


City Life

by KorrasamiTrouble



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: 8 Mile AU, Crime, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Empire AU, Explicit Language, F/F, Gang Violence, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Just a lot of things that is too long to tag right now, Misogyny, Please Keep That In Mind, Romance, Story contains, This does not in anyway Reflect the views of the Author, Transphobia, Warning!, transphobic language
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-28
Updated: 2017-10-07
Packaged: 2018-07-18 18:41:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7326049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KorrasamiTrouble/pseuds/KorrasamiTrouble
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Korra moves to Republic City to fulfill her dream at becoming a great MC. Asami is a famous R&B singer who is tasked by her father to find a new artist for their record label. When these two meet, Music will never be the same.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Big City Dreams

**Author's Note:**

> Author's Note: This is an AU highly influenced by the Movie 8 Mile. Just like the movie there will be Rap Battles. With that being said there will be terms used that are offensive. As a writer please know that what is said does not reflect on my views personally. It's just me telling a story and Korra's transition through it all. So if you are easily offended I suggest you not read this story. Real life is offensive. Hip Hop (Rap) expresses raw emotions through storytelling and this is the story that I want to tell and it will hit close to home not only for the readers but for me as well. So again I would like to apologize ahead of time if terms that are said and used offend anyone.
> 
> Credit | Inspirations: A few songs I heard inspired me to actually write this story. One in particular is J. Cole's song A Tale of 2 Citiez. Another was T$RL by The Neighbourhood. I always wanted to write something based off music and this was the best possible thing because it fit together so smoothly. Not only did 8 mile influence me the show Empire did as well. So if you see any similarities that's where it came from. Also I want to thank ChongTheNomad on Tumblr. She really helped me by explaining what she does and what I should look up in order to gain the information I would need for this story as well for Asami's part in it. So thank you so very much I really appreciate you taking the time out to help me with that and for allowing me to use your name in it. So again thanks for that.
> 
> PS: All lyrics, rhymes, lines are mine unless said otherwise. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. See you later, Gladiators.

Korra was sitting on her bed listening to her music. She finished packing an hour ago and took this time to jot down a few things on her mind. She had been waiting for this opportunity since she graduated high school. Now that it was here she was feeling a bit nervous about the situation. This would be her first time away from home, to a big city no less and yet that wasn't her cause for concern. It was the lie behind it that would get her there.

Trying to get her mind off it, she replayed the song she was listening to and jotted down some words on her notepad. _Getting the hell outta dodge. Ripping off this camouflage. I'm being myself, your ego I can no longer massage. Pressed pause on my life for you. Too many times it's true. No longer backing down this is something I gotta do. For me..._ A knock at the door broke her from her thoughts.

"Come in.." Korra said taking one of her ear buds out.

Tonraq peeked his head in the room before stepping in completely. "We're leaving in ten. You almost ready?"

Korra moved her notepad to her side and nodded her head. "Yeah I will be," she answered.

"Alright," Tonraq replied with a half a smile. He left the room and closed the door shut.

Korra felt bad for lying to her parents but this was something she had to do. It had been a year since she graduated from high school so fabricating a scholarship to the Republic College of The Arts for Audio engineering wasn't so far fetched to believe. She knew they wouldn't let her go to Republic City without a good reason. Her parents were proud of her fake accomplishment and made arrangements for Korra to stay with her Aunt Kya.

Despite coming close to her goal, Korra wanted to puke from the thought of it. Wondering if she would get caught or worse her parents changing their minds. She snapped out of it when Naga woke up. She felt the canine nudge her at the knee. "Its really happening girl," Korra said running her fingertips through Naga's fur.

"I'm a be gone til December," she sang with a chuckle. Naga looked at her with a sorrowful look. "I'll be back though. So don't get use to me being gone," she said with a brighter smile. Naga's mood perked up when her owners did. Korra knew it would be difficult to leave for multiple reasons. Naga was one of them. The main reason was another.

* * *

Korra was saying goodbye to her mother while her father put her bags into the trunk of their car. "Later mom," Korra said giving her a hug.

"Goodbye my sweet precious baby girl," Senna said holding on to Korra for dear life.

"Okay mom," Korra said unable to break free from her death grip. "I can't breathe.."

Senna let go and placed her hands to the sides of Korra's cheeks. "Call me."

Korra gave her a nod and said, "I will."

"Everyday," Senna continued.

"I will," Korra repeated.

"Every hour on the hour," Senna said teary eyed.

Korra looked at her confused. "What?" she said thinking she misheard.

Tonraq came up behind Korra and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Hon," he said to Senna. "We gotta go."

Senna understood and pulled Korra back into another tight mamma bear hug before letting go.

Once Korra was free, she leaned down and petted her canine companion on the head. "Take care of her girl," Korra said with a smile. Naga barked and licked Korra's palm in response.

Korra stood up and fixed the strap of her book bag on her shoulder. She looked up to the window on the left side of the house and nodded. She walked to the passenger side of the car and got in.

* * *

During the car ride to the docks, Korra drifted off into thought. She wasn't sure if this was the right move or not. Doubt was setting in until her father broke her train of thought.

"Who would have thought my little girl would be accepted into one of the most prestigious schools in the United Republic. And for Audio engineering no less," Tonraq said flashing a smile at his daughter.

"Yeah..." Korra mumbled under her breath.

Tonraq noticed the change in her tone again. "You ready for the big city?" he asked glancing back over at her from the road.

Korra shrugged her shoulders, "as ready as I'll ever be," she said wanting to get off the subject.

* * *

When they arrived at the port, Tonraq helped Korra bring her bags on to the ship. "Thanks dad," Korra said with a soft smile.

Tonraq mimicked her smile and pulled her into a hug. "Be careful."

Korra held her father tighter with her head pressed against his shoulder. "I will," she said pulling back.

"Remember to visit us during the winter solstice," he said wagging his index finger at her.

Korra chuckled with a nod. "How could I miss it?" she said knowing it was a tradition.

Tonraq gave her a look, "you better not," he said hearing the honk of the ship. He took a deep breath knowing it was time. "I'm so proud of you. I wish..." he said unable to finish his sentence for some reason. "I wish.."

"I know..." Korra said cutting him off. "I love you dad."

"I love you too," he said giving her one last hug.

Tonraq got off the ship and waited as they set sail. He waved when the ship started to move.

Korra waved back trying not to cry. She knew this was it. It was no going back from here only forward.

* * *

Around 3pm, an emergency meeting was being held at Sato Records. One of their biggest artist was arrested for possession of an illegal substance. Hiroshi was livid. "What are we gonna do about this?" he asked wanting answers.

News reports of the scandal played behind him on the flat screen. It was on every major news station across the United Republic. What made matters worse was everyone's silence. One in particular his daughters.

Asami felt her father's eyes on her. She had nothing to say since she didn't want to be there in the first place. She wanted to speak with him before the meeting started but Hiroshi brushed her off as usual.

"Deez is on his second offense. I say we cut our losses before it gets any worse," Tarrlok answered. He was the CFO of Sato Records. A smug son of a ruthless thug that Asami couldn't stand.

Hiroshi appreciated his opinion more than most but knew he had no musical bone in his body. "You may be right but Dezmin is one of our most successful artists on this label. I want a way around this. Get the attention off of him," he said pointing at the screen.

"How do we do that?" asked a low level employee. Hiroshi shot him a death glare which made him shrink down into his seat.

Before Hiroshi threaten to fire the poor bastard, Tarrlok spoke up. "We replace him with a new artist."

Noatak shifted in his seat now interested in the conversation. "That's not a bad idea," he said getting everyone's attention. "We can set up a competition around it. An old fashion rap battle. Find someone with real drive that won't do... this," he said gesturing to the screen with the police chase Dezmin caused. "Who ever wins. We sign. I guarantee all this will all blow over by that time," he said so sure of himself. He was the one who brought Dezmin 'Deez Nuts' Nattsu to the label so it was only right he'd be the one to replace him.

Hiroshi heard Noatak's suggestion and loved it. "Then we will promote this as soon as possible," he gestured to their publicist.

"Don't worry," Noatak said standing up from his seat. "I'll handle the details."

* * *

After the meeting in the board room, Asami when straight to her father's office. "Dad," she said soon as he took a seat in his chair.

"Yes sweetheart?" Hiroshi answered looking up from his phone at her.

"I need to talk to you about my next album," Asami said hearing a groan. She wanted to take it into a different direction than the last two. It was something very important to her and the way he was reacting made her think it wasn't worth it. "I have big plans for it. I wanted to know if you listen to the tracks I sent you last week?" she asked knowing he did since the email said read.

Hiroshi gave his daughter a look of disappointment. "I did and I don't think the board would approve on the direction your music is taking," he said as if he didn't have an actual say in what goes.

Asami knew what he was saying was bullshit. It had nothing to do with the board. It had all to do with his ego. "The direction I'm taking is apart of me. If you can't accept that then you don't accept me," she said feeling a bit hurt behind it. She took a second to gather her words before continuing. "And if that's the case I'll join another company that would," she said knowing he'd take it as a threat. It wasn't. It was a promise to herself not to settle for anything but the best.

"I love you dearly but the last thing this company needs is another scandal. You saw what happen to Deez," Hiroshi said pointing to his office door. "We need to stay clear from that chaos and start fresh."

"My next album is a way to start fresh. All you need to do is give me the okay," she practically begged. Asami didn't like putting her music on hold this long but this was important. This was her future as an artist. She wanted to be herself and show that through her music instead of holding back.

Hiroshi saw the look on his daughter's face and knew she wasn't going to let this go. "You really want this?" he asked as if he didn't know the answer.

Asami's eyes lit up quickly. "Yes I do." _Was he actually considering it?_

Hiroshi gave her a nod and said, "alright. I'll let you do whatever you want on your next album without a hassle," he said seeing her cheerful expression. "If you can find a replacement for Deez," he said with a smile of his own.

Asami's smile faded. She knew there had to be a catch. There always was. "That's A&R's job not mines," she said folding her arms. She was upset with the mind games he was starting to play. It was always something with him. A no would be better than this crap.

"Yes but if you want this as badly as you claim... you'll do it," Hiroshi said still smiling brightly at his only child. He knew he backed her into a corner and didn't care. As long as it would prolong another conversation like this in the future. He was content. "If you can do that. We have a deal which means no more threats about leaving the company," he said pointing at her. "Deal?" he asked holding his hand out to her.

Asami narrowed her eyes at her father but then flashed her own smile. "Deal," she said taking his hand and shaking it.

* * *

Asami was in her office looking at YouTube videos on her laptop. She knew a lot of people posted videos covering songs but for rap she wasn't sure. How was she suppose to determine the talent of a person in a genre she didn't know anything about. Sure she listen to it here and there but it wasn't the same thing. Her phone rang before she could stress on the subject. "Hey where are you?" she asked seeing the picture of her best friend on the screen.

"Stuck at work since one of our dancers dropped out last minute," Opal answered while doing a bit of stretching on the floor. "You speak to your dad yet?"

"Kind of... he didn't completely shut me down this time so that's a start," Asami stated as her eyes skimmed the computer screen.

Opal glanced at herself in the mirror as she stretched her right leg into her inner left thigh. "What he say exactly?"

Asami thought on how to phase his words in a less condescending manner. "Basically if I wanted to put my music out like I wanted to I had to find someone to replace Dezmin," she said knowing it would have to be a rapper no exceptions. It would be a hell of a lot easier if it were another singer or pop star but that offer wasn't on the table.

"I heard about it earlier. Deez is stupid," Opal said switching the position of her legs.

"I know plus Noatak sent out a tweet a few minutes ago about the competition he'll be setting up to find 'the next big thing'," Asami said knowing it would be harder to pull in an artist because of this competition. It was perfect for Noatak since he use to be one of the hottest rappers in the game. Now he was the president of Equalist Entertainment, a music label apart of Sato Records. More artists would be drawn to him instead of her.

Opal was looking through her twitter account and saw Amon's tweet. "Sounds like your dad is setting you up for failure. Do you know anything about rap music?" Opal asked knowing Asami was all about the classics as well as pop and r&b.

Asami was looking up other artists who were currently in between labels, "nope but I'll find out," she said knowing this would take some time. "R&B isn't that off from Rap itself," she said hearing a knock at her door. "I'll see you tonight right?" she asked hearing Opal question it at the other end. Asami knew a way to convince her, "I'll pick up some of that famous pie you love so much..." she said hearing a squeal. "See you later," she said hanging up soon after. "Come in."

Noatak walked into her office with a smug smirk on his face. "Heard about your father's offer," he said cutting to the chase. He made his way to the side of her desk and leaned on it. "You should leave the talent search up to me."

"You may have found. 'Deez Nuts!'" Asami said gesturing to her pants quoting the now arrested rapper. "But look how that turned out," she said with a smug smirk of her own.

Noatak chuckled at her antics, "he's just a weed head that's all," he simply put. "What we need now is to go back to basics. Find a real artist with that raw untapped talent that's been missing for a while now," he said eyeing her like he usually did. "You can't do it alone."

Asami rolled her eyes as she looked back at her computer screen. "What makes you think I need your help?"

"You'll need all the help you can get at this point," he said standing up straight again. Noatak walked back and stopped by the doorway, "if you want it... you know where to find me," he said with a wink before closing the door behind him.

"Ugh..." Asami said knowing this was gonna be a nightmare.

* * *

Korra finally arrived in Republic City. Getting off the ship, she saw the bright lights of the buildings in the distance. It was nothing like the south. The air here was a lot thicker with a more smoke like smell and not the cookout kind. "We made it," she said to herself with a small smile.

"Korra!" a woman shouted in a sea of people.

Korra looked around to see who called her out. She had been on the boat for hours and was trying to adjust to something other than the swaying of the boat in the ocean.

Before long, Korra spotted her Auntie Kya waving her hands around like crazy person standing up in the car of her blue mini yak coop. "Korra!" she yelled again.

"Hey!" Korra shouted walking her way. She dropped her bags and gave her aunt a hug.

"Hey Tui Wolf. It's so good to see you," Kya greeted Korra with her old nickname. She gave her a big squeeze before letting her go. "Welcome to Republic City," she gestured to the buildings behind her. "You must be starving! Come on let's get you something to eat," she said taking Korra's bags and loading them into the trunk of her car.

* * *

Kya drove Korra back to the diner she owned. It was a small but decent space. Bringing Korra inside, Kya gave her the rundown on the place. "A lot college students come in here because of the partial wifi signal we get from next door," Kya said gesturing to the wall. "Other than that it's old farts with good taste," she said with a smirk.

Korra eyed the place and the few customers that were in it. "Its nice."

Kya smiled at that and placed her hands on Korra's shoulders getting her attention. "I'm really glad you're here and willing to give me a hand. Thank you," she said letting go of her niece's shoulders.

"In exchange for free room and board with a bit of cash on the side. I'm the one that should be thanking you," Korra said with a bright smile.

Kya laughed and put her arm around her niece's shoulders. "Come on, let me show you where you'll be resting that pretty little head of yours," she said letting her go and leading her up the stairs. Kya opened the door to the upstairs apartment above the diner. She walked inside and walked down the hall and opened up the sliding door. "This is the guest room where you'll be staying," she said gesturing to the small room inside. "It isn't much but it can be home for the time being."

Korra looked inside and saw how small it was. She walked in and placed her bags by the side of the bed. Looking around, Korra nodded to herself and settled her eyes back to her aunt. "Thank you," she said with a smile of her own.

"You're welcome. I'll let you get settled. Come downstairs whenever you're ready to eat dinner," Kya said before leaving the room and sliding the door back.

Korra turned around to the window behind her. She opened it a crack and saw a nice view of the city. She also saw a fire escape by her window and looked down seeing the sidewalk. It was another exit point if she wanted to get downstairs or to the roof.

Closing the window back, Korra flopped down on the bed and laid back on it to stretch. "Home sweet home..." she mumbled to herself.

* * *

After a good 20 minutes, Korra came downstairs and sat in a booth.

"There she is," Kya said bringing Korra her plate. "Your favorite."

Korra smiled at the spread. "Fish and Chips. Nice," she said grabbing a fork. Kya placed a bottle of tartar sauce and told her to eat up. "I will thank you," Korra said with a smile. Kya nodded and headed back into the kitchen.

While eating her food, Korra looked around and observed people in the diner. She caught a glimpse of a woman picking up her food and leaving her jacket behind in a seat she was waiting at.

Korra wiped her mouth and got up from the booth. She walked over to the seat and picked up the dark leather jacket. She looked out the window and then around the diner. "Shit..." she said to herself before exiting the cafe. She spotted the woman up the street power walking to her car. Not wanting to spook her, Korra jogged lightly and stopped a few feet away. "Excuse me Miss!" she said projecting her voice.

Asami got the door to her car, opened it, and placed her bag of food in the passenger seat. She froze when someone shouted at her from behind. Grabbing the mace out of her purse, Asami turned around slowly ready to use it only to see a young woman in a blue hoodie. "Yes?" she question thinking it was a fan of hers.

"You forgot this," Korra said holding up the woman's jacket.

Asami was upset for leaving her jacket behind and took it once it was handed to her. She looked through both pockets surprised her belongings was still there. Realizing how it must have looked, Asami looked back at the woman and smiled. "You must be new to the city."

Korra gave her a confused look then a nod. "Yeah?"

"It's just... a lot of people wouldn't take the time to do such a nice thing," she said placing her jacket on. Fixing her collar, Asami gave her a look wondering if she knew who she was. "Thank you," she said in a genuinely surprise voice.

"Your welcome," Korra said placing her hands in the pockets of her hoodie. She then turned around and headed back to the cafe.

Asami raised a brow when the woman turned around with another word. Thinking she should do the same, Asami got inside of her car taking her keys out of her purse again.

Korra stopped and turned around to see the woman one last time. She saw her in the driver's seat starting up her car. When their eyes locked, Korra spoke up. "My names Korra by the way," she said introducing herself.

Asami stuck her head out of the drivers side window. "I'm Asami."

"It was nice meeting you," Korra said holding her hand up. "Hope you have a goodnight."

"You do the same. Goodnight," Asami said before pulling her vehicle out onto the street and driving away.

Korra smiled brightly and walked back down the block by herself. She walked passed a wall with a bunch of fliers on it. She stopped and walked back seeing one that got her attention. It was for a rap battle at a place called the Underground. Korra took it off the wall and read the upcoming dates and times. One was tomorrow night and open to all newcomers. "I think I just found our break," she said to herself. She folded up the flier and placed it into her pocket while walking back to the diner.


	2. Hip Hop 101

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Asami calls a former group member for help. Korra goes to her first Rap Battle and meets the Fire Ferrets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note: Hey Guys. So just an FYI kind of thing. This fic was the least voted for. So I thought it was only right to write it at the same time as Special Delivery so you all could see the potential in it. The turn out for it so far is amazing. I'm really glad your enjoying it because this is something I wanted to write for a long time. I finally can and can't wait to write more.
> 
> Credit: I wanna thank PyroPhoenixSamurai for letting me use her name in this story. I know you've been waiting for a minute for me to put this story out and its finally here. Always appreciated the support (bat) fam. Hope I did your name justice. Salud.
> 
> Warning: Harsh language will be used. Misogynistic views will ensue. What is said and what is done in this story does not reflect my personal views what so ever. Again its just story I want to tell. That's it. There are people like this in the real world who say and do things that you will read in this story that is offensive. Again you have been warned.
> 
> PS: All lyrics, rhymes, lines are mine unless said otherwise. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. See you later, Gladiators.

Asami was in the studio recording one of her songs. She knew her father didn't approve of the pronouns she was using and didn't care. It was her music and she was going to record it her way. Putting it out was the problem.

Noatak came into the room and saw Asami in the booth. He walked up and stood beside the engineer listening.

When he caught her eye, Asami signaled for the engineer to stop the track. She walked out of the booth already annoyed by his presents. "What do you want?" she asked taking her phone out of her jacket pocket.

"Equality for all. Songs that can be sung without prejudgement based on ones sexuality," he said in a serious tone. Noatak covered his mouth before pointing at her, "wait that's just you," he said mocking what she said to her father years ago.

"I don't have time for your little games," she stated with aggravation brewing in her tone. Asami folded her arms and arched her perfectly shaped brow. "Why did you interrupt my session?"

Noatak shrugged his shoulders with a smile. "Wanted to know if you found an artist yet."

Asami shook her head looking off to the side. "No. I will soon," she said meeting his gaze again.

Noatak couldn't help but laugh. "You know my offer is still on the table right?" he said coming closer to her.

"No thanks... I'll find someone on my own," she said grabbing her jacket and bag. Asami headed for the door only for him to step in front of her.

"Come on don't be like that.." he said reaching up to brush her hair.

Asami turned her head to avoid him touching her. He was already invading her space but that was nothing new. "What? Not interested?" she asked with a puzzled look as if he really didn't know what she meant.

Noatak chuckled at her quickness. "You will eventually," he said thinking he was weighing her down.

A knock at the door interrupted their conversation. Noatak stepped away from her as Ginger walked into the room. She gave them both a suspicious look before speaking. "I need to speak with you about upcoming dates and venues," she said adjusting the clipboard she had in her hand.

Noatak gave her a nod before looking back at Asami. "Think about it," he said with a wink.

Ginger gave her another look before leaving the room herself.

Asami gave her a look back daring her to say something. When they left the room, she unlocked her phone and made a call. Through Noatak's constant yammering Asami gained an idea. "Hey its me. Wanna grab lunch?" she asked with a smile.

* * *

Korra woke up to the smell of pancakes and a loud honking horn outside. She knew she wasn't in the south anymore. It was something she had to get use too. Getting out of bed, Korra stretched a bit and grabbed her stuff from her bag. She left her new room and walked into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

Downstairs in the diner, Kya was already taking customers orders. She opened up the diner around seven in the morning. All her normal customers showed up like clock work.

It was eleven by the time Korra came down stairs. She wore a regular white t shirt, blue sweats and white sneakers. "Hey," she said spotting her Aunt.

Kya flashed a smile at her behind the counter. "Hey you. Just in time for the lunch rush," she said walking up to her niece.

"I can get started whenever you need me," Korra said ready to start now.

Kya chuckled at her enthusiasm. "I'd rather you eat first but before you do I want you to meet the staff," she said walking into the kitchen. "Korra you remember my brother Bumi. He's our cook slash dishwasher," she said to be cheeky.

Bumi gave his sister an annoyed look and turned his attention to Korra. "Its nice to see you again," he said giving her a nod. He wore a hair net over his head and an apron around his waist while he cooked.

"Nice to see you too," Korra said with a smile. She remembered seeing him a few times when he came to visit his mother. Their families were connected through Kya and her mother. When Senna was a child Kya would come over to babysit her. Since then Senna had become a little sister Kya had always wanted. Reason why Korra called her Auntie Kya.

Kya tapped Korra on her shoulder and pointed at the male waiter with glasses through the small cooks window. "That's Ryu. He's been working here for a bit to pay off student loans," she explained while turning Korra's attention to another member of staff. "That's Aiko. Again student loan debts but she's a good worker. Speaking of which. When do you start your classes?" she asked curiously.

Korra was a bit taken back by her question. "Uhh... soon," she said with a nod of her head. "The new semester doesn't start til next week."

"Good because I want to work a schedule around your schedule," Kya said standing in front of a white board. She had less people to work with than before since a lot of students were going back to school. "So let me know when you get it. For now you can work in the mornings. Afternoons are all yours," Kya said handing her an apron to put on.

Korra took it in hand and placed it on. "So what do you want me to do?" she asked not knowing what her position would be.

Kya wasn't sure how to break it to Korra so she came right out with it. "Clean up. I know its not the most glamorous job in the world but someone has to do it. Think you can handle it?" she asked unsure how she would take it.

"I cleaned up after Naga for years. This will be a piece of cake," Korra said ready to take on this challenge.

Kya was surprised by her reaction but was happy none the less. "That's a great way to look at it but before you do anything you need to eat something. Tell Bumi what you want and he'll make it for you on the house," she said before leaving the kitchen and back behind the register.

Korra looked over at Bumi with a small smile appearing on her face. "Blue berry pancakes."

* * *

Asami was sitting in a private booth at a local cafe she always went too. They were discreet and always kept her name out of things. The service was decent but the food could be better.

"Sitting alone?" a familiar voice asked.

Looking up from her phone, Asami saw her good friend Hotaru. "Not if you join me," she said standing up to give her a hug.

Hotaru gave Asami a quick hug before sitting down and joining her. "So what's new with you?" she asked grabbing a menu.

"Oh the usual bull with my dad. I have some tracks I wanna put out but he's being stubborn," she said taking a sip of her smoothie. Asami needed a plan B if she was ever going to put her music out the way she wanted it.

Hotaru raised her hand up to signal the waiter. "Reason why I left the label years ago," she said looking back at Asami. "You can too."

Asami shook her head no even though she consider it a million times before. "We made a deal," she said as the waiter came over to the table. She waited as he took her friends order and left to get her drink. "If I find a replacement for Dezmin I could put my music out like I want too," she said knowing it wasn't much of an offer.

"Isn't that A&R's job?" Hotaru asked raising a brow.

"That's what I said but he wants me to do this to prove how serious I am," Asami mention still feeling a bit annoyed by it.

Hotaru chuckled in disbelief, "maybe if you tattoo it on your forehead he'll know how serious you are..." she said shaking her head. She remembered the girl group they had during high school before Asami went solo. It was fun until her father got involved. He had to have things his way all the time. It was the main reason she left the label aside from their other group member.

Asami smiled at her friends statement slightly amused by it. "Maybe if I tattoo it on my ass and flash the world with it he'll take me serious," she said with a laugh. She missed hanging out with her friend like this. It had been a few years since they did. Both of them working for different labels made it difficult to do so. "I need help," she asked bluntly. "I can't find this replacement on my own since I know nothing about the rap game so I was wondering if you could talk to Pyro for me."

Hotaru was about to speak until the waiter came back with her order. She thanked him and turned her attention back to her friend. "I'll give her a call. We can all hang out later and discuss it. Sound good?" she asked while taking a bite of one of her fries.

"Sounds great," Asami said with a bright smile.

* * *

Korra was busy busing tables most of the day. It was a lot of work but she could handle it. Listening to her music helped. She brought a tub of dishes into the kitchen by the sink to wash them.

Kya came in a few minutes later and watched Korra placing a few dishes into the sink. "Hey," she said waving her hand up to get her attention. When Korra looked her way, Kya signaled for her to pull out an ear bud. "Why don't you take a break. Explore your surroundings," she suggested with a smile. "If you want I can take you later?"

Korra was surprised by her suggestion and knew if she didn't go by herself her Aunt would bring up school again. "I'll check it out before it gets too dark," she said with a small smile. "I'll call you if I need the company," she added to not completely shut down her offer.

Kya simply smiled with a nod. "Call me if you get lost," she said before leaving the kitchen.

"I will," Korra said with a smile of her own.

Korra left ten minutes later with her navy blue varsity jacket on. She walked around the neighborhood passing many shops and corner stores. It was way different than the country. Everything was close by instead of a mile away.

Spotting a music shop, Korra smiled to herself and walked inside. She looked around seeing different sections for CDs and stopped in the hip hop one. She briefly scanned through it before going into the composers section. "Oh shit..." she said seeing one of her favorite musicians. It was Chong's limited edition album with bonus tracks and features. Korra had been waiting for a good minute for this to come out.

"Now that's gonna be a classic," a man pointed out.

Korra turned around seeing a man with bright green eyes standing in front of her. "Yeah it is," she responded by holding up the album in her hand.

The guy gestured to it with the nod of his head. "You interested in buying it?"

Korra looked at the price and shook her head. It was more than what she had on her at the moment. "Maybe another time," she said knowing it would be gone by the time she came back for it.

"I could set it aside for you whenever you decide to come back and get it," the guy offered with a smile.

"Thank you but that's not necessary," Korra said putting the album back on the shelf.

The man waved it off and took it off the shelf. "It's no problem. I just need your name," he said ready to take it up to the front.

Korra took a deep breath and thought on whether or not she should give out her name. She glanced at the album and knew she wanted it. "It's Korra."

The guy pointed at his name tag and said, "I'm Bolin. Nice to meet you," he said with a smile. "So what other music are you into Korra?" he asked out of curiosity.

"Hip hop mostly," Korra answered with a nod of her head.

Bolin grinned from ear to ear at her response. "Really? Who's your favorite rapper of all time?"

Korra thought on his question and said, "Yeti," since he was from the Southern Tundra.

"Yo! Yeti is the punchline king! He seriously got bars for days its crazy," he said walking to the front of the store and behind the counter. Bolin placed the album down and grabbed a sticky note and attached it to the CD, writing her name down on it. He turned around and placed it into a reserved box. "You heard his new stuff?"

Korra watched as he wrote her name down and placed it into a reserve box. "Here and there but not recently no," she said thinking on it.

"I understand. Shit after that beef he had with Terra Era I thought his career was gonna nose dive," Bolin said ready to rant on the subject until Korra spoke up.

"Hey do you know about this battle that's happening tonight," Korra asked taking the flier out of her jacket pocket. She placed it down on the counter for him to see. It was at some place called the Underground. She wasn't sure if she would be able to find it in time. Asking her Aunt was out of the question so he was her best bet.

Bolin picked up the flier and laughed in response. "Yeah I do. I'm hosting it," he said with a huge smile. "If you want I can take you there tonight."

Korra didn't know this dude from a hole in the wall but was considering his offer. She would be able to see a side of the city her parents or aunt would never approve of. He was still a stranger that thought never left her mind but this opportunity was one of the main reasons she came here in the first place. She knew she would have to play this smart. "Sure sounds good," she said with a nod.

"Awesome. Meet me back here around 7 and I'll take you," Bolin said since he'd be closing the shop around that time.

"Alright I will," Korra said flashing a small smile before leaving the shop to head back to work.

* * *

"Are you sure she's okay with us stopping by like this?" Asami asked as they walked up to Pyro's apartment door.

Hotaru shrugged her shoulders and knocked on the door. "We'll find out soon," she said with a smile. "Relax. She said we can stop by whenever," Hotaru mention to ease Asami's panicked expression.

Pyro opened up the door a few minutes later with a confused expression before smiling. "Come in," she said stepping aside. Once they came inside, Pyro walked a head of them with a wave of her hand. "So I heard you were looking for some rap artists," she said walking into the living room.

Asami walked behind her passing countless Batman collectors items. "Yeah I don't really know where to start," she said taking a seat on the couch. Looking around the room, Asami saw a shelf full of swords representing each nation.

Pyro grabbed her laptop and sat next to Asami. "You could always start here," she said going on to Youtube and clicking on a video. It was rap battles across the four nations. Plenty of artists with skills to kill any emcee who would step to them.

Asami watched a few short clips since the main battles were at least 30 minutes long. Each person going three rounds before determining a winner by the crowd or judges. "Some don't even have a beat to it," Asami said a bit confused. She thought rappers usual went on the beat. It was a bit odd to see them flowing without it.

"Who raps on a beat anymore?" Pyro said with a chuckle. She pointed at the crowd in the video. "See how they're booing him. How could you hear his bars over the beat if people are being little shits?" she said knowing what it was like to be in that position. "Think of it this way. When you're trying to find a singer and hear the quality in their voice. You ask them to sing A Capella. Its the same without rapping on a beat. You wanna hear them flow," she said with a nod while clicking on another video to show her example.

"You got any guacamole!" Hotaru shouted from the kitchen.

Pyro shot a look over in that direction with a small frown. "Fuck outta the fridge!" she said knowing all her food would be gone again.

Hotaru came back into the living room with dip and chips. "Found it," she said with a smirk.

"You're a pain in the culo you know that right?" she said pointing at her friend. It was worse when they went on tour. Hotaru could eat up to ten plates or more at a buffet. It was impressive and a bit scary at the same time. Pyro had to lock her fridge any time she came over. Turning back to Asami, Pyro pointed at one of the emcees on the mic. "Its not always that simple though. See how he messed up. Its all about timing too. Like how you sing on key. You gotta flow when you rap specially on a beat."

Asami watched it and understood the gist of it. "Can you show me what you mean?"

Pyro thought on it and said, "alright," ready to give her an example. "Check it. They call me Pyro because of my technics. Don't question my ethics. Ever since I was an adolescent. Life is something I always questioned. Deadly batman obsession. Samurai profession with a sick sword collection. Aries essence is in your presence. That will keep you second guessing. Until the day that your forever resting. Stressing on your BSin' is out of the question. Pissing me off you'll need more than a prayer for your resurrection. My return; like a phoenix is a blessin'. Demolishing anybody in my wake so don't go testin'. What's left of my patience is a fair warning, so get the message and take this rhyme as a lesson. Any more questions?" she said with a laugh at the end.

Asami flashed a huge smile thoroughly impressed. "Wow that was amazing. Is there any local battles I can check out?" she asked wondering if she could see this up close.

Pyro pulled up one of her favorite battles and pointed at the title. "Yeah its called the Underground. There's actually a battle going down tonight if you wanna go?" she said reading between the lines. Hotaru spilled some guacamole in the carpet and scooted her seat up to cover it. "Cállate!" Pyro said putting her index finger to her lips over at Hotaru.

Asami thought on it and shook her head. "I'm not sure. I don't want to be noticed," she said wanting to keep her presents low key.

"You won't be noticed if you dress in disguise," Hotaru suggested sipping on a caprisun.

Pyro looked at her like she was crazy. "That's the last one. How'd you find it?" she asked knowing she hid it well. Hotaru shrugged and continued to drink it til it was all gone. Pyro's eye started to twitch. She took a deep breath in order not to committed murder. "I know the bouncer..." she said to Asami. "He'll let us in without a problem."

Asami felt comfortable with the thought of no one recognizing her. The only problem was to make sure these two didn't kill each other first. "Okay I'll go."

"Great! Now we just have to find something for you to wear!" Hotaru said pointing a chip Asami's way with the dip falling on to the carpet again.

"That's it!" Pyro said getting up and grabbing the container trying to resist the urge of strangling her neck.

* * *

Korra's shift was finally over. She had the perfect excuse to go out this time of night. Walking into the back, Korra knocked on the door to Kya's office.

"Come in!" Kya shouted in response.

Korra came in with a smile on her face. "Hey is it okay if I go and check out the bus scheduling? I forgot to pick it up earlier," she said pointing behind her.

Kya didn't think much of it and gave a nod of approval. "Sure," she said seeing Korra disappear after she answered. "Wait can't you find it online!" she asked not hearing a response. Sitting back in her chair, Kya shook her head, "kids... don't have any and already a head full of grays," she said with a groan.

* * *

Korra met up with Bolin ten minutes later. She stood outside the record store as he was closing up.

"You ready?" he asked coming out of the store.

Korra pulled out her phone and took his picture along with the name of the store. "Now I am," she said sending her aunt a text with his picture in it. She wrote how she met up with a friend who was also attending the same school next semester.

Bolin thought it was weird but shrugged it off. "Alright let's go," he said walking down the side walk. They walked a few blocks down a sketchy neighborhood until they reached a building with graffiti on the side of the wall that read: Underground.

There was a long line down the block to the entrance. Bolin walked toward the back of the building and knocked on the door to one of the exits. A guy opened up the door seconds later letting them in.

Korra came inside and looked around the area. It was a spot that looked remodeled a few times.

"It's a community center. They let us do this over the weekends in exchange for volunteering throughout the weekdays," Bolin mention looking back at her with a smile. He walked up to a group of guys giving them all dap. "Hey this is my new friend Korra," he said gesturing to her. "Korra this is my cousin Tu aka Dj Tu on the ones and twos," he said with his cousin giving her a nod. "This right here is my lil' bro Kai aka K. Breeze!" he said putting his little brother in a head lock messing up his hair. Bolin then pointed over at the last guy in the corner. "That punk over there is my older brother Mako aka Hot head aka Blaze," he said with the rest of them quoting the word 'up' to follow.

"Nice to meet you," Korra said with a nod to all of them.

Mako looked up from his phone and over at Korra with a scoff. "Whatever..." he said walking off.

Korra grilled him a bit before Bolin stepped into her view. "We're setting up now. Wanna see?"

"Sure," Korra agreed following Bolin and the guys to the front where the stage was. Coming inside of the huge room, Korra thought it was an auditorium until she noticed the gym floor and high ceiling. The guys were setting up on the stage with Bolin grabbing the mic.

"The fuck is going on tonight! Y'all alright?!" Bolin shouted with the packed crowd cheering loudly. Korra stood by the stage steps next to Kai. "Good now. Welcome to the Underground! My name is Rocky Bo and as you know its about to go down! Like we do every time we in the building!" he shouted getting the crowd hype. Tu finished setting up as Bolin continued. "Give it up for DJ Tu on the ones and twos," he said pointing at his cousin behind him. Tu raised his hand up with the crowd cheering.

Kai had a camera pointed toward the right side of the stage while his friend Skoochy was on the left side recording it for their website.

Bolin chuckled at the reaction and proceeded. "Now without further delay lets get this battle under way," he said as the two emcees came up on to the stage. "To my left is the man with plenty of rounds left in the chamber give it up for Ammo!"

A short guy about 5'5 walked up to the center of the stage pointing out into the crowd. He heard them imitating a round of gunshots, his signature phase.

"To my right is my bro, the big homie, the one and only give it up for Blaze!" Bolin shouted with Mako stepping near the front of the stage holding his hands up hearing a few in the crowd say 'Blaze up!' "Right right right," Bolin said to simmer the crowd down. "You dudes know the rules and for those of you who don't. Let me lay it out on the table," Bolin said mainly for Korra's benefit. "Each cat is gonna have 45 seconds to spit their bars in three rounds. The crowd will choose who moves to the next round. You like it? Cheer. You don't? Boo. Its pretty simple. Straight to the point and less time consuming. Right? Y'all dudes ready?" he asked with both men giving him a nod. Bolin tossed a coin up in the air and covered it on the back of his hand with them both calling heads or tails. Holding up the coin, Bolin showed them both heads. Mako pointed over at Ammo to go first. "Iight Ammo its on you!" he said with Tu putting on a beat.

Ammo held the mic in his hand and pointed directly at Mako. "I can see why they call you Blaze cause you lame as hell! The only way you'll ever have bars is in jail," he said putting emphasis on the last word. He pointed behind himself at his people. "See my dogs are straight monsters, they mongrels, they'll put the hurt on you," he said gesturing back to Mako. "You look like a college dude with a bag of roofies on you!" he said with the crowd saying 'ooo'. "Ladies be careful round this man, dude is real serious. He gets mad about everything like he's on his period!" he said getting in his face. He took a step back waving it off. "Never mind he'll fit right in on some gossip girl B.S. Fixing his hair and make up like he was Ryan Seacrest," he said adjusting the red cap on his head. "You use to be a triple threat. Now you just a one trick pony. You ain't a gangsta you a phony. Who only belongs in the dirt. Six feet deep with the rest of the worms. How you named Blaze but ain't lit like you claim. Ammo could blast you right here, leave you dead on the stage. Sweep up your ashes, roll it up, put a spark to that haze. Let the whole crowd watch as you fade away!" he exclaimed with Bolin calling the time. "Blaaat!"

Mako heard the crowd hollering and held his hands up for them to calm down. Tu started the beat up again with Mako raising the mic up to his lips. "You need to stand up when you speak to me. My bad. What are you like 5 foot 3? You short fuck!" he said invading Ammo's space. "You're like a toddler not a grown up. Even your mustache looks drawn on. Is that a sharpee or a crayon?" he asked raising his finger up to the guys face. "I'm not artistic so I wouldn't know. Are you 20 or a two year old? Are those mens or babies clothes? Thinking you fading me. You must be slow," he said getting hype now. "Cause this fire never dies down. I'm blazing up in this bitch. Every bodies higher now. Cause I'm on that level you could never reach. And no that wasn't a short joke but it worked so I'm keeping it," he said with the most serious expression he could muster. He raised his hand up over Ammo's cap. "This shit goes over your head like a breeze. That was a short joke this time, I do this with ease," he said hearing a few people laugh. "Having you begging please. For a mercy killin'. And I'm willin' to let that thing pop. Like an angel of death and I don't mean Overwatch. Get it? Mercy. You better shut up when I speak! Respect your elders before you get your ass beat!" he said bending down a bit to get in his face. Mako backed off and came closer to the front of the stage. "Its no debate. Ya'll know who brings the heat. Blaze up!" he said hearing his regular chants to 'Blaze up'.

Korra was in aw at the whole battle. The next two rounds got even crazier than the first. Bolin's brother had mad skills but the shorter dude had better punchlines and delivery. It was hard to tell who was going to win this one.

Bolin got the crowd to finally calm down and raised the mic up to his lips. "Alright. Alright. What y'all think about my man Ammo?" he said holding the mic over his head. Ammo received a lot of cheers specially from his section of people near the left side of the stage. "Cool Cool. What y'all think about my bro Blaze?" he asked hearing more people scream and cheer for Mako than Ammo. "Like the kid said its no debate. Blaze wins this one advancing to the next round," he announced calling a 5 minute intermission and waiting for the next MC to step up to the mic against his older brother.

Korra waited like everyone else as another man came up to the stage on the same side as Ammo did. As Bolin spoke, Korra felt her phone vibrating in her pocket. She took it out and saw it was her Aunt calling. She walked off into a more quieter area in the back and tried to call her. The call dropped. There wasn't any good reception. She opened up the exit door and put a stopper there so she could get back in.

Walking off to the side, Korra placed the phone back to her ear waiting for her Aunt to pick up. "Hey you called?"

"Yeah where are you?" Kya asked while placing a customers food in a container.

"I'm with my friend Bolin. You know the guy I sent you a text of earlier," Korra said hoping her cover wasn't blown.

Kya thought on it and smiled to herself. "Oh yeah. I remember now. I only called cause your parents called me," she said placing the container in a bag. Korra's heart almost dropped in her chest at the thought of her parents finding out until Kya continued. "They couldn't get through. I told them it was bad reception," Kya said seeing how she had her own trouble with long distance calls. "Anyway just call them tomorrow soon as you can."

Korra let out a sigh or relief. "I will."

"Alright. Don't come back to late," Kya said handing the bag of food over to the man. She then thought of something before Korra could hang up. "Oh and don't get pregnant!" she said with the man giving her a look before taking the bag and leaving.

"I won't trust me," Korra said finding that last part weird. After hanging up, Korra went back inside to see the rest of the battle.

* * *

Asami and Hotaru borrow some of Pyro's clothes to stay incognito. They had hoodies, shades, baseball caps and baggie sweats on. When they arrived at the Underground, Pyro walked pass a line of people with the girls. The bouncer let them in since he knew Pyro. They moved through a crowd of people and got a spot near the right side of the stage.

No one seemed to notice Asami or the girls which put her mind at ease. Asami heard that the next battle would start soon. A man with a red scarf around his neck was waiting on stage. Another man walked up the stairs and stood across from him. The host call the next battle with who was going to start.

Asami watched the whole battle play out. It was the same as the videos she seen but to witness it up close was way different. The crowds reactions was the same as hers. It made her feel like she was apart of it in a way. She was so use to people watching her perform that she wasn't sure what being a fan was like. It was all new to her but she enjoyed every bit of it despite the harsh language.

"So what do you think?" Pyro asked in her ear since it was pretty loud.

"Its great but I wouldn't know who to approach for this kind of thing," Asami responded in her ear the same way.

Pyro thought on it and shook her head. "Its not going to be that simple. See these are battle rappers. Its way different being an artist. Its a whole different world. Now some emcees can spit but can't make a song. Some industry artists can make a song but can't spit. If you're lucky enough you'll find one who can do both. You just have to wait and see who has what it is you're looking for," she explained the best way she could over the loud noise of the crowd and music.

Asami understood more now that she explained it. She wasn't sure exactly what she was looking for but would find out. "So which one are you?" she asked Pyro in her ear. "A battle rapper or an artist?"

Pyro flashed a cocky smirk and said 'both.'

* * *

Korra came back toward the stage and saw the battle was over. Mako walked off the stage and passed Korra with a pissed off expression. Bolin told the crowd they would take a ten minute break this time. Korra figured he lost but wasn't sure why he was so angry about it.

The last battle was just as good as the first one she seen. She picked up on a few things and admired the art form in which some of these rappers phrased their words. It was all about technique and executing it well.

Once it was all over, Korra went to the back where the lounge area was. She saw Mako with that same pissed off look stuck on his face. She walked up to him thinking it wouldn't hurt to ask. "What happened?" she said wondering if he was okay.

Mako gave her a look and rolled his eyes as if she did something to him.

Korra was immediately disgusted by that. "What's your problem?"

"I'm sick of you wannabe's hovering around like a fucking drone. You have no business being here," Mako said taking his frustration out on her.

"The fuck you say-" Korra said only to be cut off by Bolin.

He walked up stepping in between Korra and his brother before anything else could happen. "You need chill," Bolin informed his older brother. Korra didn't deserve that kind of treatment. It wasn't her fault he lost the battle. Mako just rolled his eyes again and walked off. Bolin turned to Korra seeing her pissed off as well. "I'm sorry about that. He's just a bit touchy cause he lost," he said giving a simple explanation. He knew it didn't excuse his brothers actions in the least but he still wanted to extend his apologizes. "There's a big battle coming up soon. Its gonna be hosted by a Legend around these parts. Rumor has it that who ever wins gets a record deal out of it," he said wanting to explain further so it could paint a bigger picture on the stress related to his brothers words.

Korra was caught off guard by the news she was hearing. "A record deal?" she questioned cutting him off.

"Yeah. We would be reppin' the RC-" Bolin said about to go into depth again until she spoke up.

"I'd love to be apart of that," Korra said with a small smile forming on her lips thinking about it.

Bolin wasn't sure what she meant by that and then asked. "Can you rap?" Thinking it was one of the reasons why she was even here.

Korra wasn't sure if he was going to poke fun at her or take her serious but decided to respond anyway. "Yeah."

"For real?" he said in disbelief. Bolin had met plenty of female rappers before but not like this. He was sure she was a singer or at least a dancer.

"Yeah for real," Korra said waiting for him to say something like his brother.

Bolin's face lit up with joy. "This is perfect!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Korra wasn't sure what she got herself into. "Why?"

"Because you can be apart of our crew!" Bolin said without a second thought. He knew he would have to talk it over with the guys but for now he couldn't help but think of the possibilities.

It was Korra's turn to question whether he was for real or not. "Are you serious?"

Bolin couldn't stop grinning like an idiot. "Hell yeah! Can we meet up tomorrow and talk about it?" he asked super excited about the idea.

Korra wasn't sure and the look on her face showed it. When Bolin started to plead, getting down on both knees causing a scene, Korra caved in. "Alright I will," she said trying to pull him off the ground.

Bolin stood up again brushing his kneecaps off. "Awesome. I'll swing by and pick you up tomorrow," he said about to ask for her address.

"I have to work tomorrow," Korra said unsure if this was going to work.

"Where?" Bolin asked curiously.

Korra shrugged her shoulders not sure about an address but said. "Kya's diner."

Bolin's mouth dropped at the thought of it. "The one with the amazing pies?" he asked with Korra agreeing with the nod of her head. "Nice. I'll see you then."

"Cool. I'll see you tomorrow," Korra said with a small smile.

* * *

Asami left with the girls once the battle was all over. She changed back into her normal clothes and drove home. Exiting the elevator, Asami saw Noatak standing by her front door. "What are you doing here?" she asked taking her keys out of her purse.

"Found the perfect place to hold the competition," He said leaning up against the wall.

"I don't know why you're making a big spectacle out of it," she said standing next to her door.

Noatak chuckled at her and shrugged his shoulders. "Its what your father would want specially after what happen to Dezmin."

Asami turned to face him with an arched brow. "Where is it?" she asked to get to the point.

Noatak took out a flier and handed it to her. "Its at the Roku Theater near Central Square," he said as she read the promotional flier. "If you invite me in I could tell you more about it," he said licking his lips.

"It'd be a cold day in hell before I do that," she said handing him back the flier.

"I think I felt a chill," he said as if he was shivering. Noatak laughed at her rolling her eyes. "I was thinking you could be a judge. Help me find the next addition to join our company," he said wondering if she would consider it.

Asami placed her key inside of the key hole and turned it to unlock her door. "Its a nice thought but I'll pass," she said opening it up. "I'll find an artist on my own," she said before going inside of her apartment, closing the door and locking it.

Noatak stood up straight when she opened up the front door. "Your loss..." he said as she closed the door in his face.


	3. Part of the Krew

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bolin wants to make Korra a Fire Ferret. Asami meets an unexpected artist.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note: Hey Guys! So I know I have multiple stories going on right now but I will be continuing Asami's son. Chapter 6 is in the works. I haven't dropped any story I had so far and don't plan on it. Though I do plan on participating in Korrasami week this year. So look out for that. Anyway, hope you all enjoy this chapter as I enjoyed writing it. Later Gladiators!
> 
> Warning: Minor language.
> 
> PS: All lyrics, rhymes, lines are mine unless said otherwise.

Korra glanced at the clock on the wall for the millionth time today. She was waiting for Bolin to show up around her lunch break. After their small conversation last night, Korra was intrigued about what their group had to offer but wasn't sure if she wanted to join.

Kya noticed how distracted Korra was and decided to ask. "What's on your mind Tui?"

Before Korra could answer Bolin walked into the diner. "Hey!" he said out loud with a wave of his hand.

Kya turned and saw the young man a few feet away. "Oh I get it," she said with a smirk.

"It's not like that," Korra said not wanting her Aunt to get the wrong idea.

"No I understand," Kya said brushing her words off. She flashed her niece a smile and said, "I was young once," while thinking on her teenage years. "You can take an extra 20 minutes for your break. Need anything let me know," she said before walking off to the back.

Korra's face turned red at her Aunt's assumptions. She was never that boy crazy even when she was in high school. So for her Aunt to assume that made her extremely uncomfortable but it was better than her knowing the truth so she let it go. "Thanks," she said glad their weren't any embarrassing questions to follow.

When Kya was out of sight, Korra walked up to Bolin with a sigh. "Hey," she greeted taking off her apron.

"You ready to go?" he asked pointing to the exit.

"Yeah," she said with a small smile.

Bolin walked toward the front door and stopped when he remembered something. "Oh do you think I could get a free pie to go?"

Korra thought on it and shook her head. "I just started working here so I don't know but I'll buy you one," she offered.

"Nah I don't want to put you in a weird position. Thanks anyway," he said opening the door and holding it out for her to walk through.

Leaving the diner, Korra walked beside Bolin down the side walk. "So where are we going?" she asked wondering where he was taking her.

"My place. I want to show you something," Bolin said walking up to his car and getting in. Korra was a bit hesitant but got into the passenger seat anyway.

* * *

Asami was at home listening to some old school hits that Pyro had sent her. Her playlist was interrupted right at the good part when Opal called her. "Hey you."

"Hey. I think I found an artist you might be interested in," Opal said unsure if she was actually going to go for it.

"Can they rap?" Asami asked curiously, hearing the uncertainty in her friends voice.

Opal wasn't sure if she would call it rap but it was damn near close. "A... yeah. You could call it that."

Asami rolled her eyes with a smile. "Send me something."

"They don't have anything recorded yet but you could meet them in person," she said in an upbeat tone of voice.

Asami looked at the time on her phone and shrugged her shoulders. "Sure why not. I'll meet up with you in an hour," she said hearing Opal's enthusiastic cheer before hanging up.

* * *

Bolin didn't live that far away from the diner. It was about 20 blocks away so it took him no time to get there. He parked in the drive way and got out seconds later. "This way," he said walking up the small steps and inside.

Korra followed him inside and walked straight into the living room. She saw an older woman on the couch watching reruns of family feud.

"Korra this is my Grandma Yin. Grandma this is my friend Korra," he said making a small introduction.

Grandma Yin turned her attention to Korra and gave her a smile. "Hello dear."

Korra gave her a small bow in return. "Hello ma'am."

"We're going to the basement. Call me if you need anything," he said before heading into the kitchen. Korra waved goodbye before following Bolin's path.

Going downstairs, Bolin walked into the large room spotting Kai and Tu playing the game. "Guys!" he said getting their attention for a brief moment. "You remember Korra," he said gesturing to her.

Korra walked up beside Bolin and held her hand up in a small wave.

"Whaddup," Tu said with a nod of his head. Kai raised his hand up for a second before placing it back on the controller.

Bolin shook his head at their rudeness and walked over to the other side of the room. "Come check out the studio," he said waving her over to where their equipment was set up.

Korra followed his path and saw the mini studio they had set up in the corner of the basement. It was pretty impressive to say the least.

"Took us a while to get it down. The quality, sound, everything," he said showing her the board. Bolin looked over at his cousin and held his hands up to his mouth. "Yo!" he shouted to get their attention. "Could you shut it off for a minute?" he asked so he could show Korra how it worked.

Tu and Kai groaned simultaneously and shut off the game with sponge bob left on the TV.

Bolin thanked them and began to run down the basics of how everything worked. "We're trying to make a demo now but we're lacking something."

"What is it?" Korra asked wondering what it could be. They seemed to have everything they needed so far to make it happen.

"I don't know yet," he said in all honesty. It had been bugging him for months as to what it could be. Trying anything he could to bring their sound together.

Tu turned his attention to Korra and whistled at her. "Yo can you rap?" he asked unsure of why Bolin was showing her their set up.

Korra looked over at Tu and shrugged her shoulders looking away. "A little," she replied feeling a bit nervous by his question.

"Spit something," he asked leaning back on his beanie bag chair.

"I'm not sure if I could," she said feeling a bit on the spot.

Tu chuckled a little bit understanding the pressure. "Its all good here. Just spit something real quick. Doesn't have to be but a few bars," he said as if it were nothing.

Korra thought on it and said, "alright," before walking over to were they sat. She took a seat in a near by chair ready to do this. "Give me a subject."

Tu thought on it and looked around the room and at the TV. "Sponge bob," he said since the show was on. Kai chuckled.

"Are you kidding me?" Korra said thinking it was a joke.

Tu shook his head no. "Its a subject and its on right now," he said gesturing to the TV. "Come on spit that sponge bob shit," he said trying to encourage her.

Korra looked at the TV and back to Tu. She wasn't sure if she could do it but shrugged her shoulders. "Alright," she agreed in a 'fuck it' sort of manner.

"You need a beat?" Tu offered.

"Nah I got it," Korra said already thinking of a rhyme pattern and started to flow. "Yo. I live under the sea in a pineapple. You'd think cause of my laugh that I just came back from White castle with Kumar and Harold. But I'm with a bigger asshole. Named Squidward but lets fast forward to another day," she said extending her hand to the side. "I was kicking ass and taking names with a dame named Sandy doing some Kah Rah Tay," she gestured with her hands. "Raided Patrick's stash of candy way before I fed my pet snail Gary. Its fair to say that I got to work on time. Hell yeah I'm Ready!" she said getting louder. "Gonna make some crabby patties. Ran into Squilliam and knocked off his toupee. He almost fell oh well I'm still getting paid. At least that's what Mr. Crabs claims," she said pointing to the tv at the characters. "Probably receive an envelope full of change but after work I'm moving on to bigger thangs," she said extending her hands wide. "And a bigger net for jelly fishing before the sun sets. Yeah I'm well equipped better yet take a nice long bike ride home with perfect weather out of luck. I know driving is out of the question don't even ask Mrs. Puff cause she'll just blow up. That's it," she said unable to go any further. She waved it off with a laugh not sure where to go from there.

Tu laughed along with Kai and Bolin. "Yo that was dope I ain't gonna lie," he said extending his hand out to her. She took it and gave him dap.

Mako came downstairs after hearing so much noise. "The hell is going on?" he asked until he saw Korra. "Oh," he said flatly without a hello. He turned his attention to his brother with the nod of his head. "Yo Bo I need the keys to the car," he said since he had to be at work in five minutes.

Bolin stood up and took the keys out of his back pocket. He tossed them over to his brother and sat back down. "Yo what'd you think," he said gesturing over at Korra with the nod of his head.

Mako looked over at Korra then back to Bolin. "I don't have time for this shit," he said before disappearing back up the stairs.

Korra rolled her eyes with an agitated look on her face.

"Forget him," Bolin said brushing it off. He got up and grabbed his laptop before sitting back down. "Hey you wanna freestyle on this beat I'm trying to make?" he asked looking over at her with a smile.

"My breaks not that long," Korra said not sure how long she had been their already. "Maybe I could another day."

Bolin understood and brought up the file anyway. "Could you just listen to it? Tell me what you think," he asked really wanting her opinion.

Korra gave him a nod with a small smile. "Alright," she agreed sitting up.

Once Bolin hit play, everyone in the room started to nod their head to the beat. She couldn't help but get rhymes stuck in her head wishing she had her note pad or something to write them down with. Not wanting to lose any, she stopped thinking about it the best way she could.

"Do you rap?" Korra asked wanting to know more about Bolin.

"Some what. I'm more like a hype man more than anything for our group," he said with a smile. Bolin wrote a few songs here and there but was more into producing than anything.

Korra remembered he mention wanting her to be apart of their crew yesterday. "Your group?"

Bolin smiled at her with a nod of his head. "Yeah the Fire Ferrets."

"Why'd you name it that?" Korra asked curiously.

Bolin took out his phone and showed her a picture. "Because of Pabu. Its our pet our parents bought us before they died," he explained smiling softly at the picture.

Korra understood why and didn't want to pry any further. "Sorry."

"Nah its okay," he said looking up at her with a smirk. Bolin flipped through his photos to show Korra more of the little scamp. "We wanted to do something in their honor so naming our group after Pabu was perfect," he said swiping it to the left again to show her a group photo. "See Mako's a rapper, Tu's our DJ. I'm a bit of both and Kai's a singer," he said pointing at each of them. Bolin smiled even wider at an idea he had brewing in his mind. "If we had another emcee we would be complete..." he said hinting it over at Korra.

"I'm not sure..." Korra said seeing how much this group meant to them. "I mean I would be down for it but its a lot for me to decide right now plus... your brother doesn't really like me."

Bolin knew Mako would be a pain in the ass about it but would were him down on the subject eventually. "He'll adjust. Come on... please. You'd be an awesome addition to the team. Just think about it," he said hoping she would.

Korra sighed unsure of what to do. She shook her head no but smiled slowly. "I'll think about it," she said not giving a definite yes.

It was all Bolin wanted to hear. "Awesome," he said with a smile.

When he closed the application to his pictures, Korra saw the time. "Shit. I gotta go," she said standing up. She gave them all dap and started to head back up the stairs with Bolin.

"I could take you to the train station," Bolin said once they were outside.

Korra shook her head no not wanting him to go out of his way. "I got it. Thanks anyway. See you later," she said before walking down the street.

"Later!" Bolin said before heading back inside.

Korra walked down the street heading in the direction of the train station. She reached into her pocket to get her phone and call her Aunt to explain her tardiness. "No no no no no," she said when she realized she left her phone back at the diner. "Dammit."

* * *

Asami knocked on the door to Opal's apartment and was let in a few minutes later. "Where's this artist you were going on about?" she asked with a cheeky smirk.

Opal closed the door behind her and walked pass her into the living room. "He'll be here soon," she said hearing a faint knock at the door. "See," she said gesturing to the door. Opal walked back to the front door and held her hand on the door knob with her eyes settled on Asami. "Now I want you to keep an open mind," she said before opening the door.

When the door opened, Opal's brother Huan walked in with a long teal gown with his arms open wide in a theatrically way that demanded attention. "Its nice to see you again Miss Sato," he said lowering his hand to hers and shaking it.

Asami was speechless to say the least. She took his hand once it was handed to her and shook it. "Nice to see you again as well Huan," she said looking from him over to Opal. "I had no idea you rapped," she said directing her attention back to Huan.

"Ah yes. Rap," he said with almost an eye roll. Huan had many talents to show case and for his poetic side to be stuff into this little box was insulting. "I have never 'rapped' before. What I do is called Spoken Word. Its an oral form of arts," he explained in a rather snippy manner.

"I see... could you give me an example?" Asami asked politely with a hard smile.

Huan gave her a bright smile of his own. "I thought you'd never ask. This one is called Nana," he said taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. "Oh Nana!" he said abruptly startling both women. "Have I forsaken thee?" he asked holding his hand up in the air. "For it is I whom have eaten what was left of your snack. What was left of your past to pass through you to me!" he said pointing back at himself. "I am your legacy. I am an entity of human indecency who would not ask for anything! No! I would never ask only take. Take what is yours and make it mine. Take what is anyone's only to realize that what was yours has split my mind in twos," he said holding up a piece sign. "Two halves I can never make whole again. Two halves of a coin I can not make you well again. For I have eaten your snack. Nana. I have devour what was yours. I have eaten a cure, a source for your pain. A source for you to gain the strength you once had. A Banana for my Nana who has type two Diabetes," he said with a bow ending his dramatic poem.

Asami was confused as hell and wasn't sure whether to clap or laugh. She chose to clap holding back on her amused expression. "That was... that was something," she said covering her mouth.

Opal was already laughing behind her brothers back with no sound. She was trying to hold it and couldn't.

"I know," Huan said pretty pleased with himself.

"Yeah its a... its great," Asami said not sure how to let him down. "But I'm not really sure how to transfer it over to music," she said watching him nod to her criticism. "Plus some of it didn't rhyme."

Huan took it all in and soaked it up like a sponge. "I understand," he said taking a deep breath. "I could give you another poem."

"No!" Both women said at the same time. Asami cleared her throat and shook her head. "No that's not necessary," she said with a smile. "But thank you for the one you showed me it was... something," she repeated again. "I have to go I forgot I had a meeting to get too," she said giving Opal a look.

"Oh yeah you gotta make that. Can't miss it twice in a row," she said walking Asami to the front door.

Asami walked out the door soon as Opal opened it. "Thanks for the help but I'll have to find someone who does this for a living," she said meaning an actual artist.

Opal smiled and gave Asami a hug. "I know. Thanks for listening to Huan anyway," she said letting her go.

"Your welcome. I'll call you later okay," Asami said before disappearing down the hall.

"Okay," Opal said with a smile before closing the door.

* * *

Korra paid the toll with the change she had in her pocket. She waited for the next train and got on it. Despite the situation she was in, Korra still had that beat in her head. She sat down in a seat by the closing doors nodding her head lightly. ' _South side til I croak. Dump your body off of the boat. While your sinking to the ocean floor my team blowin' up like a float. Cause we all that and plenty more. Feel it deep down in my core. I could do this all day while you complain cause your bored. You need to fall back.'_ She tapped the side of her head to stop these thoughts before she lost them.

Hearing the conductor mention the next stop, Korra had no idea if it was hers or not. She stood up and waited for the train to stop. She got off when the doors open, grabbed a map and went down the stairs.

Looking around the area, Korra knew she was lost. "Come on..." she said ready to face palm herself. Kya was going to kill her when she got back. Korra walked down the street looking for a pay phone. She found one and dialed her Aunt's number. Not hearing a dial tone, Korra looked down seeing the cord was cut. "What the..." she said hanging up. _Fuck. What am I gonna do now?_

'Hey!' a voice called out to her. Korra turned around and saw the woman she met the other night. She had left her jacket behind in the diner. Awkwardly raising her hand up, Korra smiled softly saying 'hi' back.

Asami pulled up in her car looking over at Korra with an amused smirk. "You lost?"

Korra looked down at the train schedule in her hand. "Kind of..." she said looking back at Asami. "But I'll find my way."

"Its getting late," she said glancing at the time on her phone. Asami looked back at Korra with a raised brow. "By the time you find your way... it will be morning."

Korra thought on it and gave her a nod. "True but I'll know the streets by heart around then," she said with an amused smile.

Asami chuckled at her remark and smiled wider. "Would you like a ride?"

Korra walked up to the side window of the passenger seat with a raised brow. "You trying to pick me up?" she jokingly asked with playful grin on her lips.

"Maybe..." Asami said biting her lower lip in a mischievous way. She giggled at the surprised expression on Korra's face. "I owe you one for my jacket."

Korra cleared her throat with the nod of her head. "Right. I remember," she said thinking about the night she arrived in Republic City. She felt a bit embarrassed to run after a total stranger but was happy to give them their belongings.

Asami noticed how she zoned out right in front of her. "So..." she asked in a gentle tone of voice.

Korra snapped out of it with a questionable look on her face. "Oh a... sure," she said accepting her offer. She opened the door and got into the passenger seat.

"Where to?" Asami asked while Korra placed on her seat belt.

"You could just drop me off at the diner," Korra said as the car started to move.

Asami drove down the street and up to a red light. "You work there?" she asked curiously.

Korra rubbed the back of her neck and said, "not for long," knowing she could be fired after today.

Asami chuckled at her response. "I'm sure your boss will understand," she said stepping on the gas when the light turned green.

* * *

When they arrived, Asami parked her car near the side of the diner by a fire hydrant. Korra took off her seat belt and looked over at Asami. "Thank you," she said sincerely.

"Your welcome," Asami said with a content feeling. She enjoyed her company even if it was for a short ride. Thinking of something, Asami spoke up before Korra could get out. "If you have some permanent days off after today... maybe I could show you around the city. You could avoid getting lost again," she offered with a small smile.

Korra chuckled at her comment and gave her a nod. "I'll probably be fired but I'm not sure about when my day off is."

Asami understood nodding her head as well. "Do you have a number I could reach you at?"

"I left my cell phone inside," she said pointing at the building. Korra didn't know it by heart and in this case she wish she did.

Asami gave her a puzzled look before reaching over and taking a pad out of her glove compartment. Korra got a whiff of her perfume in the process. Asami sat back in her seat and began to jot down her own number. "Here," she said tearing off the piece of paper she scribbled on. "Call me when you have a day off," she said handing it over to her.

Korra looked at the piece of paper and took it. "I will," she said looking back at her. "Thanks again," she said before getting out of the car. She stopped by the door and waved at Asami before going inside.

* * *

Walking inside the diner, Korra glanced out the window seeing Asami drive down the street. Kya popped out of no where nearly scaring her out of her skin. "What happened?" she asked in almost a panicked tone of voice.

"I got lost," Korra said hoping she wasn't going to fire her.

"I knew you would just not this soon," Kya said not surprised by it.

Korra looked around the diner not seeing a lot customers. "Was it busy today?" she asked looking back at her Aunt.

Kya shook her head no. "That's not the point. I was about to call your dad," she said worried about her nieces whereabouts.

"I'm sorry," Korra apologized not wanting her father involved. "I'll make it up. I promise."

Kya could see how serious Korra was and wasn't going to hold it against her for long. "Three strikes and you're out," she warned.

Korra understood the rules her Aunt had set in place and gave her a nod in response. "I'll get right to work," she said ready to grab her apron.

"No need," Kya said holding up her hand. She gave her niece a soft smile. "Get some rest."

"Thank you," Korra said before running up the stairs and into the apartment. She took a long hot shower and came back into her room 20 minutes later.

Laying on the bed, Korra thought about what happen today. She wasn't sure if she wanted to join Bolin's group or not. Everyone was cool except for his brother. If it wasn't for him she probably would have gotten a ride back in time before her break was over. Then again if he didn't she wouldn't have run into Asami again.

Thinking about it and her made Korra smile. She glanced at the number Asami wrote down and picked up her phone. She placed it in and put her phone back on charge. Sitting up, Korra grabbed her note book and began to jot down a few rhymes that came to mind before passing out.


	4. On The Spot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ginger puts Asami in a tough position. Korra runs into Asami again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note: Hey Guys! So this is the same message I put on my Special Delivery fic. I will be a little slower at updating my stories for the next couple of months. My health isn't 100% at the moment so that needs to take priority more than anything. Hope you all understand and enjoy this chapter. Later Gladiators!
> 
> Warning: Harsh language will be used. Misogynistic views will ensue. What is said and what is done in this story does not reflect my personal views what so ever. Again its just story I want to tell. That's it. There are people like this in the real world who say and do things that you will read in this story that is offensive. Again you have been warned.
> 
> PS: All lyrics, rhymes, lines are mine unless said otherwise.

Asami was sitting by the sound board with her producer Tao listening to the last track they recorded. It was satisfying to finally get the song down right. "I like that," she said listening to the way the hook road over the beat perfectly.

Ginger walked into the room and cleared her throat to get their attention. "Still working on this song I see," she commented with a fake smile.

Asami sat back in her chair with her arms crossed. "This is a closed session. What do you want?"

"Not much..." she said walking up to them. Ginger stopped behind Tao's chair and tapped him on the shoulder."Do you mind?" she asked with a raised brow as to tell him to _get up_. Tao rolled his eyes and got out of his chair. Ginger took his seat and turned it around to face Asami. Seeing Tao was still standing there, Ginger raised her hand up to him and waved him off. "You can go now."

"I'll finish up," Asami told him with a sorrowful look on her face to apologize for Ginger's rudeness. Tao gave her a nod and left the room. Asami cut off the track and turned her attention to the impatient red head. "So what is it?"

Ginger placed her purse down on her lap and smiled. "Just checking in. How's the artist search going?"

Asami was holding back on slapping that smile off her face for wasting her time. Instead, she gave her a smile in return. "It's as easy as you look," she said gesturing to Ginger. "I mean... as you make it look," she said with an innocent smile.

Ginger knew what she meant and took that as a challenge. "I know you don't approve of my engagement to your father but you will have to get over it at some point," she said crossing her legs.

"Sure in Neverurary," Asami easily replied.

"You know what... that's a great idea," Ginger said with an evil grin. "February would be the perfect month to set the date for our wedding. Maybe on the 14th," she said knowing that would piss Asami off.

Asami gave Ginger a death glare after what she suggested.

Ginger covered her mouth in fake shock. "Oh I almost forgot... that was your mothers birthday right?" she asked as if she didn't know. "If I could forget that easily... I'm sure Hiroshi would too," she said standing up.

Asami stood up when she did and got in her face. "Watch it," she warned.

"You should do the same if you want to put your own music out there..." Ginger threaten with a smug smile.

Before Asami could respond, Tarrlok knocked on the door. "Ginger?" he said opening the door. He saw the look on Asami's face and knew Ginger said something foul again. "Do you have a minute?" he asked holding up a folder for her to see.

"Of course," she said walking over to him. Ginger stopped by the door and turned around to face Asami again. "Great chat," she said with a wink before leaving the room with Tarrlok.

"Fucking bitch..." Asami said when the door closed. It was bad enough her father was marrying the devil with the dyed hair. Now she had constant annoyances bugging her about finding an artist. "I need to find one soon..." she said to herself as she looked through her phone. An alert popped up seconds later from one of the apps she had. It was a rare music one that gave several locations for record store day with an album she was looking for. "Oh shit..." she said with a smile when she saw Chong's limited edition album was finally released. She quickly got up and grabbed her stuff to head out to go get it.

* * *

Korra worked five days straight with no breaks to make up for being late last Sunday. She wanted to prove to her Aunt how dedicated she was to help before starting 'school' soon. Keeping in mind of what her Aunt said: _Three strikes and you're out_. Even though Kya wasn't holding her little slip up against her. Korra still felt guilty anyway because of the lie that got her to Republic City in the first place. Her parents had no clue and Korra wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible. She couldn't afford to make a mistake.

Glancing over at the register, Korra could see her Aunt chatting with a customer. She wondered if her Aunt knew or at least suspected something whenever the topic of school was brought up. Pretending to attend a prestigious college was harder than it seemed. Korra knew she would have to do some more research and find a place to go whenever she was suppose to be in 'class'. For now she just wants to save money and work on her music.

Bolin came inside of the cafe and saw Korra busing a table in the back. "Yo!" he said getting her attention.

Korra quickly looked his way and smiled. "Hey," she greeted back. She gave him dap and a hug before letting go. "What are you doing here?"

"I was on break. Thought I'd stop by pick up some pie and say hi," Bolin said with a chuckle.

Korra chuckled with him and gave him a nod. "Well your just in time. There's some fresh apple pie that was made a few minutes ago," she said gesturing to the one that was almost gone.

Bolin looked over at the counter and licked his lips. "I'm a get two then," he said with a smile. "But that's not the only reason I came. I wanted to know if you were coming tonight," he said taking a seat in a booth.

"Where?" Korra asked unsure what he was talking about.

"The Underground..." Bolin replied with a raised brow. He wasn't sure if she forgot or wasn't interested anymore.

Korra shook her head no. "I can't. I already missed work last week. I don't want to do that again," she said while cleaning off the table.

Bolin had no idea she got lost until she texted him the next day. "I'm sorry for not giving you a ride back. If you come tonight I'll make it up to you," he said with a soft smile.

Korra wasn't sure what to say to that. "I'll think about it..."

Bolin gave her a nod and stood up from the booth. "If you change your mind come to the music shop."

"Alright," Korra said before Bolin left the cafe.

* * *

Hiroshi was in the lobby ready to head up to the elevator when he saw his daughter coming out of one. "Asami!" he greeted in his loud booming voice.

Asami stopped in her tracks when she heard her father. "Hey dad..." she said less enthused.

"You speak to Ginger?" he asked with a smile.

Asami rolled her eyes slightly trying to forget their little encounter. "Yeah I did." _Unfortunately..._

Hiroshi smiled brightly at that. "So?" he asked excited to hear her response.

"So what?" Asami questioned with a puzzled expression on her face.

"So... did you say yes?" Hiroshi elaborated in his question.

Asami was becoming more confused by the moment. "Say yes to what?"

Ginger walked up to them interrupting their conversation. "To being my best woman. I mean... maid of honor," she said placing her hand on Hiroshi's shoulder. He placed his arm around her waist and kissed her cheek. "We never got around to it but since we're on the subject," she said turning her attention to Asami. "What do you say? Will you be my maid of honor?" she asked with a smug grin.

Asami couldn't believe what she was hearing. She knew Ginger was doing this to get under her skin. Before she could answer her phone posted another alert. Checking it, Asami saw another location close by. "Actually..." she said looking back at them. "I'll have to get back to you on that," she said flashing them a smile and walking off.

They watched as Asami left the building in a haste. "I'm sorry for her behavior," Hiroshi said apologizing on his daughters behalf.

"Its okay. She'll come around sooner or later," Ginger said with a devious smile.

* * *

Korra finished a load of dishes and was about to go pick up some more from the empty booths until Kya stopped her.

"Why don't you take a break," Kya said with a bit of concern in her voice. She could see how hard her niece had been working for the past week and wanted her to take it easy. "You could even have the rest of the day off," she offered with a smile.

"Really?" Korra asked surprised.

Kya gave her a nod in response. "Yes really. You've been working so hard lately you deserve a break."

Korra wasn't sure what to say to that. "I don't mind staying... its the least I can do after what happened," she said still remembering how late she came back last weekend.

"Its not busy," Kya said gesturing around the diner. "You should go hang out with your little friend."

Korra tried not to blush when she said that. "Thanks..." she said with a small smile.

Kya chuckled at her expression. "Your welcome," she said watching her niece head up stairs. "Don't forget to take your cellphone this time!" she said aloud hoping she wouldn't forget.

Korra looked back at Kya and gave her a nod before running up the stairs.

Kya walked back to the registered and poured a hot cup of coffee to a woman sitting at the counter. "Here you go."

"That her?" Lin asked taking a sip of her hot drink.

"Yeah it is," Kya answered with a smile. "Next time I'll introduce you."

* * *

Korra came to the music store with in ten minutes. She walked in and saw Bolin at the register. "Hey," she said with a small wave.

Bolin looked up from the magazine he was reading and smiled. "Yo! You made it!"

"Wouldn't miss it," Korra said with a smirk. She looked around the store seeing no one there. "So what are you doing?"

"Just chillin' and waiting to close up around seven," he said taking his phone out. Bolin went to his playlist and showed Korra the screen. "Made some more beats this week. Gonna play some tonight."

Korra took a look and saw the name of the beats he had. "Sounds good."

Bolin pressed one to play it for her. The beat was pretty smooth to rap off of. "Can you spit to this?"

Korra bopped her head to the beat. "Yeah I could. Why?" she asked wondering what he was getting at.

"Cause I want you to be apart of our team," he said with a glow in his eyes. Bolin was excited to get started on the mix tape and adding Korra would make it even better.

"I'm not sure just yet..." Korra said still skeptical about it for her own reasons. She wanted to work on her music but to be apart of a group was something completely different.

Bolin understood where she was coming from. They didn't know each other very well and it would take some time for her to be comfortable. "I get it. You need some time. I won't push. All I ask is to keep it in mind," he said turning the beat off. He stood up from his stool and pulled his pants up. "Hey can you watch the register for a minute. I gotta take a wiz," he said pointing behind him at the door to the employee restroom.

Korra raised a brow to his request and gave him a nod. "Sure..."

"Thanks!" Bolin said jogging to the back where the employee restroom was.

Korra came behind the register and sat on the stool. She started to read the magazine that Bolin was looking at. It was a catalog of music they had in the store. She was reading over the list of CD's that was coming in next month when a customer came into the shop. Korra lifted her head up only to see the person in one of the aisle. She looked back down at the magazine and continued to read hoping Bolin would come out before they decided on what they wanted to purchase.

Asami looked in the composer section not finding anything pertaining to Chong's new album. She sighed and headed up to the counter to ask about it. "Excuse me..." she said seeing a person in a black hoodie with a wolf on the front.

"Huh?" Korra uttered putting the magazine down only to see Asami.

Asami saw the surprised look on her face and smiled. "Hey."

Korra snapped out of it with the shake of her head. "Hey..." she said with a smile of her own.

"No wonder I didn't get a phone call..." Asami said looking down at the magazine she was reading. She looked up at Korra and smirked. "Since you're working two jobs."

Korra shook her head no at her assumption. "Nah I don't work here. Just holding down the fort for my friend who's in the restroom," she said gesturing with the nod of her head to the door in the back. "But I a... I meant to call you," she said with the utmost sincerity. "Its just been a long week," she said thinking about all the work she put in at the diner.

Asami was only kidding but smiled at what she said. "Its fine... you can call me whenever you're ready."

"I will..." Korra said determined to the first chance she got. "So were you looking for something specific," she asked since she saw her in the new releases section when she came in.

"I was but its not there anymore..." Asami said wondering if she should continue looking. She had been to five music shops with them all being sold out.

Korra could see the disappointment on her face. "Well whatever it is I'm sure my friend could help you out when he comes back," she said gesturing back to the door.

Asami sighed in defeat. "Maybe... its just..." she said pausing for a second to collect her thoughts. "My favorite composer Chong finally put out her limited edition CD today," she said thinking on it. It had been years since she heard anything new and to come out with a CD like this was a rare. Hell she would be lucky to find it on a vinyl release if she couldn't go with the CD. "I've been dying to get it since the beginning of the year. I looked all over the city... even online and nothing..." she said highly disappointed.

Korra looked at her surprised and quickly turned around to grab the CD Bolin had put on reserve for her. She removed her name off it and placed it on the counter. "You mean this?" she said with a smile.

Asami saw the CD when she placed it down. "Yeah but... isn't that reserved for someone else?" she asked pointing at the box it was in.

Korra held up a sticky note with her name on it. "It was for me. I was saving up to pay for it but..." she said pushing the CD toward her. "I think you should have it."

Asami shook her head no and pushed it back toward her. "I can't its for you..." she softly declined.

"Its fine. Plus you have great taste in music," she said picking the CD up. Korra handed it over to her. "So you should have it."

"That's very thoughtful of you but I can find it somewhere else," Asami said not wanting her to go out of her way.

Korra looked at her confused and raised her brow. "If you don't take it now... once I pay for it I'll wind up giving it to you anyway to make up for not calling you so it kind of defeats the purpose right?" she said with a smile.

Asami became speechless and started to smile uncontrollably at that. She hid it the best way she could and took the CD that was held out to her. "Thanks," she said feeling more content. "Maybe we can both listen to it whenever you decide to take that tour," she said taking out her wallet.

"I'd like that," Korra said with a giddy smile on her face.

Asami took out a crisp 50 yuan bill and placed it on the counter. "Keep the change," she said with a wink before leaving the shop.

Korra held the money up for her to see. "Its not that much..." she said with a sigh when Asami waved goodbye and left. "Damn.."

Bolin came out of the restroom minutes later spraying the area like crazy. "You don't want to go back there for at least a half an hour or so," he said with a laugh. He saw Korra starring out the window and wondered what she was looking at. "You okay?" he said a bit concerned.

"Yeah," Korra said handing him the money.

"Shit..." he said taking it from her. Bolin held it up in the light and gave her a nod. "I should let you watch the register more often."

* * *

Asami was driving home when she got a text from her father asking her to come over. She pulled up to the estate 15 minutes later. The young heiress was escorted to her fathers study by their butler Gādo. It was almost a year and a half since she last visited her family home. A lot has changed by the look of it. Ginger's pictures were plastered everywhere with no sign of hers or her mothers in sight. The huge portrait of the red haired devil in the living room made her roll her eyes. She knew her father was to caught up to see Ginger for who she really was. As much as she tried to warn him he wouldn't listen. He would have to learn the hard way.

"Dad?" Asami said as she opened the door to his study.

"Asami! Come in. Come in," Hiroshi said with the wave of his hand. Asami came in and closed the door behind her. "Please have a seat," he said standing up from his chair. He waited for her to sit down so he could do the same. "I want to talk to you about family, our family and welcoming Ginger into it," he said sitting back in his chair. "Its important that you at least try to get along with her," he said hoping she'd see his side.

Asami tried to hold back a chuckle. "That's easier said than done..."

Hiroshi sighed at her stubbornness. "Ginger is trying to make an effort. You should too," he said wanting things to go smoothly specially for the wedding.

Asami shook her head no disagreeing with him. She then remembered what Ginger had said earlier. "When is the date of the wedding?" she asked curiously. She wanted to make her it wasn't on her mothers birthday as Ginger threaten it could be.

"We haven't decided yet but when we do you'll be the first to know," Hiroshi said in an optimistic tone of voice.

"I'm not sure I wanna know..." Asami uttered to herself.

Hiroshi knew how hard it was for his daughter to see him marry someone else. Her mother was the love of his life but she was gone now and he was trying to move on the best way he could. "Could you just please try and do this for me," he said pressing his hand to his chest. "That's all I ask."

Asami raised a brow at his request and chuckled a loud. "It's funny when you ask me to do something you expect me to do it but when I ask you for something so simple like I dont know... putting out my own songs the way I want too," she started to list off on her fingers. "Letting me come out when I'm ready. For you not to interfere in my relationships. I get dismissed," she said pointing to herself.

Hiroshi waved it off and turned his chair to the side. "We're not having this conversation right now."

"Of course not," she said standing up. Asami fixed the collar of her jacket and looked at her father in disappointment. "We never will. It always has to be some test or strings attached," she said thinking on the artist search he put her on. Opal was right how he was setting her up to fail. After all it was his fiancee's job as head of A&R's to find new artists not hers. "I'm tired of it," she said before turning around and walking toward the door. She took a hold of the door knob and looked back at her father. "The only thing I want from you... is not to dishonor my mother. That's all," she said before leaving the room.

* * *

Bolin closed the shop two hours later and headed to the Underground with Korra. When they came inside the building, they could see Tu already setting up the equipment. Kai was showing Skoochy something on his phone while Mako was no where in sight to Korra's relief.

"Its a bit early but in the next 20 minutes its about to be lit. I don't have to tell you since you witnessed it last week!" he said still excited as he ever was. Bolin knew things were about to get even crazier than usual since the announcement Amon put out on twitter. Everyone would be bringing their A game til the actual competition would start. "We're gonna have three battles tonight and who knows... Amon might have someone at this location to check out some talent for the upcoming competition."

"Are you competing? Korra asked curiously. She had yet to hear Bolin actually spit a line so she was intrigued to see if he was even going to be apart of it.

Bolin thought on it and shook his head no. "Not sure yet. Mako will since he's a way better MC than me but I can to give it a shot," he said with a shrug. He knew he didn't have the best skills in the world. He could flow to the beat and stay on point but not throw any crazy punchlines that would make you think twice like his older brother did. "If anything he's gonna represent us there so if he wins and gets put on we all on," he said thinking in terms of all for one and one for all type of deal.

Korra tried not to roll her eyes when she heard Mako's name. "Well good luck with that," she said with a nod.

"Wouldn't need luck if we had some back up," Bolin said flashing a smile. He saw the confused look she gave him and continued. "If you represented the ferrets too we would have this in the bag," he said gaining an idea. Looking over at Mako who just came into the room, Bolin turned his attention back to Korra with a smile. "Join the battle tonight and you'll see what I mean."

Korra was a bit surprised by his suggestion. He only heard her spit once with some dumb kiddie stuff that she made up off the top of the dome. What he was asking was completely different. To battle rap you had to be in a different element. Know the person you're messing with and to make sure the bars you spit is legit and she had none of it. "I prefer to watch for now," she said rejecting his idea as nicely as she could.

Bolin gave her a nod in agreement. "Its a good idea to scout out the competition but if you change your mind let me know," he said trying to be optimistic. "We always have new comers start first before the real battles begin," he said before walking up to Tu to help him finish setting up.

* * *

As the place started to become packed, Korra was chilling in the back with Kai. "So what are you doing?" she asked gesturing to the phone in his hand.

"Writing a song but something's missing," he said with a frustrated expression on his face. Kai took a deep breath as he scrolled through his phone. "I'm not sure what else to put..."

"Can I see?" Korra asked with her hand out.

Kai handed his phone over and watched as she read a few lines.

Korra read over every lyric wondering what the point of the song was. "What is this song about?"

"It's about this girl I know. I wanted to write her a song for her birthday but its not coming out right," Kai said thinking of his crush Jinora Gyatso.

"I can help you out if you want," Korra said seeing the problem the more she read.

Kai smiled at that and told her 'thanks' when she handed the phone back to him.

Mako walked up to where they were sitting and stopped in front of Kai. "You seen Bo?" he asked completely ignoring Korra.

"Probably in the restroom," Kai said pointing behind him.

"Iight," Mako replied walking off in that direction.

Korra watched as Mako walked away. "Hi to you too!"

Mako kept walking and said, "whatever..." under his breath.

"Was he always a prick?" Korra asked Kai who was texting on his phone.

Kai sent his text out and looked at Korra amused. "Can't recall when he wasn't," he said with a shrug.

* * *

The battles were about to begin. The first round started with a newcomer who wanted to show off their skills to proceed to the next round. The crowd was rowdy as ever making it hard to hear what was said. The two MC's on stage were going at it but their lines were so corny the crowd started to boo even more.

When they were done, Bolin got on the mic again to settle every one down. "Alright alright. Give it up for East Winds own Mac Mcfly!" he shouted hearing nothing but boos. Bolin understood the reason why and continued on. "Okay okay. What about the newbie who truly came to battle J. Beanz!" he said hearing more boos for the new guy.

Bolin was in a tough position and sighed at the reactions the crowd was giving. It was no way to determined a winner for the next round if both were being booed. "Alright alright. Yo!" he said raising his hand to get their attention. "Its clear to me who won this battle..." he said looking between both men. "Unfortunately it was none of us listening so!" he said hearing the crowd laugh. "I'm have to ask both of y'all to get off the stage and bring ya A game next time. Cause at the Underground!" he shouted before pointing the mic to the crowd having them finish his sentence saying: _We don't fuck around!_ "Word up!" he said with Tu starting to scratch to another beat.

The next round started with two regulars coming up to the mic. Their battle was way better than the last by the crowds response to it. Korra watched and picked up on a few more things. It was a certain way the MC's approached each other and spit their lines to dissect one another. She wasn't sure if she wanted to be apart of it but the challenge was tempting.

At the end of the night, the winner of all three battles started to become cocky. Bolin told him he would be facing the champion next week with him snatching the mic from his hands. "And I'll dead him like I did everyone else tonight!" he said hearing the crowd cheer for him. "On some real shit though. I'll take on anybody right here right now!" he said ready to destroy someone else.

Bolin grabbed another mic near by and held it up to his lips. "Anyone?" he asked seeing the guy talk more shit. "So let me get this straight. You will battle anyone here tonight!" he projected hearing the crowd even more. When the guy shouted yeah, Bolin moved toward the edge of the stage where Korra was standing. "What about... her?" he said pointing in her direction.

Korra's face lit up when he put her on the spot. She felt her heart beating faster at all this attention.

The guy laughed hard at Bolin's choice for a competitor. "Yo! Everybody knows women can't rap for shit! Instead you should be at home making me breakfast! And if you're good. I'll leave my scraps for you to eat up Miss. Like my little dog cause she's one hungry ass bitch!" he said with hearing the crowd roar at how harsh it was.

One thing Korra couldn't stand was ignorant little shits and this one was asking for it. She got up on stage and stepped up to where he and Bolin stood.

"Whoa whoa whoa..." Bolin said holding his hand out in between the two. He knew this jerk would get a rise out of Korra but not in that way. "Okay relax," he said to the guy before looking at Korra. "Relax," he told her too. "Seems like T-Reckless is calling out for another battle!" he announced to the crowd. Bolin put the mic down for a minute and turned to Korra. "You sure you wanna do this?" he said feeling bad he put her on the spot like that. Korra kept her eyes on the guy and shook her head yes. "What name do you go by?" he asked not sure if she wanted her government one out there.

Korra looked over at Bolin with an expression that scared him a bit. "Young Wolf."

Bolin gave her a nod and raised the mic up again. "We're about to see. T-Reckless vs. my home girl Young Wolf!" he shouted with the crowd going wild.

Korra stared the guy down ready to rip his head off. That nervous feeling she had faded away and was replaced by anger. She was ready to get this over with.

Bolin flipped up a coin and covered it with the palm of his hand. "Heads or tails," he said to T-Recks.

"Heads!" He said waiting for this battle to begin.

Uncovering his hand, Bolin gave a nod to Korra. "Its tails. You pick who goes first."

Korra pointed at him with Bolin signalling for Tu to start the beat up.

The beat began to play with T-Recks bopping his head. "Yo! Me battlin' a female emcee? What a joke! I bet when she steps to this mic she gonna choke," he said doing a gesture with his hand to his neck. "Yo throw a lasso around her waist and pull the rope. Get this clown off my stage before she has a heat stroke," he said waving himself off. He pointed at her under arm next, "I see the sweat lines from your pits its super soaked. This battle ain't for you Ma so go home!" he shouted aloud. "Like the Rock and I don't mean Bo!" he said referring to Bolin. "Know your fuckin' role! And shut your damn mouth!" he said pointing at her face. "Because this is a man's game sweet heart you need to take another route!" he said pointing behind him. He held his hand up and pointed to his chest, "this battle shit is what T-Reck is all about! I got a high body count when I'm taking them all out!" he said pointing across the crowd. "Cause I'd dead any rapper, their bodies won't be found! Remorse from me? You won't find an ounce! Cause I'm reckless to the T. That's the total amount!" he said yelling even more with the crowd reacting the same.

Bolin waved to the crowd to pipe down so Korra could speak. "Its on you," he said to her with a nod of encouragement. "Tu run the beat!"

Korra heard the beat start up again with her nodding her head. In that moment she thought of what her best friend said all those years ago. _Normally when you battle someone. You know a bit about them. Whether it's personal, rumors or bullshit. That way you can use that info against them. But if you don't know anything about them it makes it a bit harder to do that so you have to take them apart in a different way. Their style, their sound, anything they say and do flip it on them._ With those words in mind, Korra put the mic up to her lips so she could spit. "Yeah I'm a female rapper but I got more balls than you!" she said pointing at him. "You're a male so you claim but you're soft as tissue. I'm about to kick this shit like its jujitsu," she said making a kicking gesture. "See I'm sick with mines like I caught the flu. You under estimated me, now you about to lose. Call me a bitch again and you gone make the nightly news," she said getting closer to him. "You must have gotten me confused with someone who you could easily take out. I'm from the south. We bust dudes like you for running your mouth!" she said gesturing to his. "And right now. I'm ready to rock you in your jaw," she said holding her fist up. She pointed at the decal on her shirt to prove her point, "this wolf is about to give you the paws. Your eyes I'll claw like a rabid dog. This cold girl you can't thaw. In this world it's cash in or withdraw. I'm a bout to bash you in your skull and like the Cap did to Tony in the civil war! You want more!" she shouted about to continue with Bolin calling time.

"Time! Time!" he repeated cutting her off. Tu stopped the beat with Bolin holding his hands up. Korra had went over 45 seconds to spit her 16's. It was getting crazier by the second but they had a time limit to determined the winner. He took a breath before speaking into the mic. "Wow. Just wow!" he said thoroughly impressed. He flashed Korra a big smile before turning to the crowd. "So y'all know how this goes! What y'all think of my man T-Reckless!" he said hearing the normal amount of cheers he's been receiving all night. "Alright alright alright," he said to get them to settle down again. "What ya'll think about my home girl Young Wolf!" he shouted at the top of his lungs hearing people yell even louder with some banging and stomping to make even more noise.

Korra looked at the crowd surprised by the response she was getting. The man across from her looked a bit surprised himself by the way they were hollering for her.

Bolin couldn't help but smile hard at their reaction. "If you want more you might get more. Give a round of applause for my home girl Young Wolf!" he said taking Korra's hand and raising it up.

Korra stared off into the crowd watching as the sea of people started to chant her name. _'Young Wolf! Young Wolf! Young Wolf!'_

Mako watched the battle from a far with a nod to her performance. For a newbie she wasn't half bad.

* * *

Asami was back at her penthouse apartment listening to some of her mothers old songs. She had the voice of an angel. It was almost like she was in the room with her. Looking a pictures, Asami couldn't help but smile at how happy her mother and father looked. She was a gentle soul and he was a brash businessman. Some how they worked well together.

"Mmm..." she started to hum to the song that was playing. She grabbed a near by pad and started to write down some lyrics for a song she was going to dedicate to her mother. Maybe if her father heard it, it would change his mind. "Love never dies..." she sang out.


	5. Just Like Music

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Korra and Asami spend the day together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Authors Note: Hey Guys, I was gone for a minute but I'm back now (logic) though I'm kind of tapped out. No seriously. I haven't written in months and I finally have the time so hopefully I can get back into the swing of things but there is no guarantees. Your patience is key and I appreciate you bearing with me.
> 
> Warning: A good time? I don't know...
> 
> PS: All lyrics, rhymes, lines are mine unless said otherwise. Hope you all enjoy this chapter. See you later, Gladiators.

Korra woke up that Saturday morning dead tired. After the battle last night, she couldn't fall asleep right away. The rush of it all was enough to keep her up past 12 with her crashing around 3 in the morning. _I'm so gonna get Bolin for this..._

Looking at her phone, Korra saw it was a little past ten. She was lucky to have the day off or she'd be singing a different tune. She sat up in bed and went through her contacts to text Bolin only to see Asami's number.

"Maybe I should call her instead," Korra contemplated. She did say to call her whenever she got a day off. It wouldn't hurt to try now. "Here goes nothing," she uttered pressing the button. Korra's chest began to beat fast after the first ring. She wasn't sure what to say to her.

When it rang a third time, Korra realized her own number was a long distance one. She quickly hung up and tossed her phone to the side of the bed. "Fuck..." she said laying back on the bed with her hands on her face.

Her phone began to buzz a minute later. Korra grabbed it and saw an RC area code. She took a deep breath before answering it. "Hello?" she said in a very low tone of voice.

Asami was on the other end of the line. "Hi, did someone call from this number?" she asked not hearing anything.

Korra sat up again and cleared her throat. "Yes I did. Its Korra from the diner," she said unsure if she'd remember her. "And the music shop yesterday," she added for good measure.

"I remember..." Asami said with a smile. How could she forget? "You hung up before I could answer you."

"Yeah... I a.. I forgot my phone is kind of a long distance thing," she said feeling bad for hanging up. Korra didn't do it on purpose and hope she didn't think it was.

Asami let out a light chuckle at her thoughtfulness. "Its fine. I can handle long distance," she assured.

Korra smirked at that. She would prefer to hear her voice over a text any day. "Did I interrupt anything?" she said hearing something in the background.

"No. I'm just finishing up," Asami said glancing around the room. She was in a photo shoot for a cosmetic line her manager set her up with.

"Cool," Korra said with a smile. The last thing she wanted to do was bother her if she was busy. "I a... I finally got a day off and I was wondering if you wanted to hang out for a bit," she said less nervous than before. The more they talked the more comfortable she got.

Asami leaned back in her chair and smiled to herself. "Sure. Would you still like a tour around the city?"

Korra wasn't expecting her to say yes but was down for it. "Yeah that'd be awesome," she said since she's never been on a tour before. And with a guide that beautiful she wasn't sure if she'd even pay attention to the scenery.

"Okay. I'll pick you up in an hour at the cafe," Asami said referring to Kya's diner.

"Cool see you then," Korra said before hanging up. She jumped out of bed and over to her luggage to get ready.

Soon as Asami hung up, She went right back to shooting the last few frames her photographer needed.

One of the security guards for the photo shoot over heard her conversation and made a call to Hiroshi. "Hello Sir? I think there's something you should know.."

* * *

An hour later, Korra ran down the stairs ready to sprint toward the door until Kya stopped her.

"Hey! Where are you going in such a hurry?" Kya asked behind the register.

"Heading out for a while. Don't wait up!" Korra said heading for the door again.

Kya wasn't going to stop her but said, "call me if you need anything," specially after she got lost last time.

Korra stopped in the door way and smiled. "I will. Thanks," she said before leaving the diner.

Once outside, Korra saw Asami's car parked up the street by a fire hydrant. She walked up the sidewalk toward the front of the car to get to the passenger side.

Asami unlocked the doors when she got close enough. "Hey," she greeted once Korra got in the car.

"Hey," Korra greeted back with a smile. When Asami moved out of their parking spot, Korra remembered something. "Oh yeah," she said to herself. She reached into her pants pocket and took out a crisp 50 yuan bill and placed it into the cup holder.

Asami pulled up to a red light and saw the money she put in the cup holder. "What's that for?"

Korra looked at Asami and gestured to the money. "Your change from the other day," she said as if it wasn't the exact amount.

"But this is the whole 50," Asami said picking it up.

Korra shook her head in disagreement. "Considering the fact that you're taking me on this tour. 20 is for gas and the other 30 is your change," she said to clear up any confusion.

Asami took the bill and stuffed it into Korra's side pocket on her blue plaid hooded jacket. "Keep it."

Korra looked down at her jacket pocket and back to Asami. "I'll find a way to pay you back," she said sincerely.

"Your company's enough," Asami softly replied. She started to move the car again once the light turned green. It wasn't long before she turned the radio on in her car.

Korra began to nod her head to the music as it played. "Who's this?" she asked pointing to the radio.

Asami looked at her surprised and smirked. "Its Wu."

"Who's Wu?" Korra asked curiously.

"A pop singer who has consistent hits on the radio," Asami answered as she made a left turn.

Korra had never heard of him or his music but found it catchy. "I don't listen to the radio so its new to me."

Asami wasn't too surprised by that but found it more interesting than anything. "How do you listen to music then?"

"I have a very crazy collection of CDs. Mostly of old school hits to hold me down," Korra said recalling the last CD she had bought. It was a minute ago but one she still holds near and dear to her ear whenever she wanted to hear something amazing. "Sometimes I go on YouTube and find something or ask around," she said looking out of her side window.

"Why?" Asami asked intrigued by her outlook.

Korra turned in her seat to face her more as she elaborated on the subject. "Music now has lost its edge. The real authentic stuff is somewhere out there in the wind. All you gotta do is find it," she said knowing first hand. "When its not mainstream. Its on another level," she said with a smile. It was true. Some of the best music she's ever heard was through difference sources instead of the same hearing well people went too.

Asami found Korra's perspective refreshing to hear. She felt the same whenever she heard a new song. No matter how it was produced it all sounded the same. Nothing was original anymore. "What kind of music do you listen to then?"

"All kinds but mainly rap and rock," Korra answered. She liked to keep an open mind whenever listening to new music.

"Interesting mix," Asami complimented.

Korra looked over at her with a raised brow. "What about you? What do you listen too?"

Asami thought on it and hummed slightly to herself. "R&B classics and a little pop here and there but that's about it," she said unable to think of anything else at the moment.

Korra took note to that and nodded. "Who's your favorite musician?"

Asami had a small smile appear on her face at the thought of it. "That singer who passed away a few years ago," she said glancing over at Korra before looking back at the road. "Lia."

"She was a great singer," Korra said knowing who she was talking about. Her music was always played around the time of her death and birthday.

"Yeah she was..." she agreed lowly. Asami redirected the question to her. "Who's your favorite?"

Korra didn't think long on it before answering. "Chong."

Asami smiled brightly at that. "Why?" she asked wanting to hear her reasoning.

Korra lightly shrugged her shoulders in response. "She's the best," she simply put. "Whenever I'm in a bad mood I put her music on and zone out," she said looking up at the ceiling of the car. A small smile creeping up on her lips. "Nothing could break me from the inner peace I feel when I hear her music flowing through my ears," she said reminiscing on how her music made her feel better whenever she felt depressed.

Asami listened careful to what she said and smiled. "I feel the same every time I listen to her music. Speaking of that..." she said switching from radio to CD player.

After a few seconds, Korra could hear a string of heavenly placed melodies playing in the car. "Is that her new album?" she asked surprised.

"Yeah I couldn't wait to hear it," she said feeling a bit guilty for playing it before hand. Asami took the CD case from underneath the center console and handed it over to Korra to see the track listing. "You're going to love track four," she assured with a smile.

Korra took the CD case and glanced over it. "Cool," she said smiling back at her.

* * *

Asami spent the day driving Korra all around the city. They saw all the amazing sights there was to see in the day time. The rest she was saving for when the sun went down. They eventually stopped at a restaurant to get some lunch.

"Order whatever you like. Its my treat," Asami said as she sat down in a private booth. This spot was always reserved for her thanks to the owner of the establishment.

Korra sat across from her feeling a bit under dressed for such a fancy place like this. "I can't let you do that."

Asami look up from her menu and smiled. "You let me have dibs on the CD so I'm going to pay for lunch," she said looking back at her menu.

Korra couldn't help but smile at her. "I will pay you back for this," she said meaning it. Some how some way she would pay her back for her generosity.

Asami gently touched Korra's hand to get her attention. "Stop. There is no need too," she said not wanting a tit for tat situation.

The warmth of her hand sent shivers down Korra's spine. "Okay.." she said submitting for the time being.

They soon ordered and talked more about music. Asami found Korra's perspective enlightening and wanted to know more. "So who would you recommend I listen to first?" she asked regarding rap music.

Korra became stumped on this type of question considering she was new to the whole genre. "Oh man that's hard. I mean there are so many artists to choose from its crazy. Plus there are different types of rap as well so it depends on what you're interested in," she said expanding on the topic at hand.

Asami had a puzzled look appear on her face. "Different types?" she asked thinking there was only one.

"Yeah like a.. trap, boom bap, gangsta, pop, horrorcore, grime, hyphy, any really," she said naming a few off the top of her head. Korra mostly listen to conscious and alternative hip hop. Anything that made her think outside the box was what she blasted through her speakers.

"Wow..." Asami uttered wondering where she would start. It was so many to chose from it was hard to find an artist to replace Dezmin. It made her wonder what type of rapper he was. "I didn't know there was so many."

Korra took another sip of her drink before sitting it down again. "No one ever does but that's the beauty of it. You can find out by listening and making the decision on what you like yourself," she said since its what she did herself.

Asami felt like this would be an impossible task but was committed to see it through. "Have you ever heard of a guy named Deez?" she asked cringing at his name choice.

Korra thought of the name and snapped her fingers pointing at her. "Nutz?" she asked chuckling. "Yeah. I don't really listen to his music like that but I did hear 'Go Nutz' like a thousand times either as someone's ringtone or on that one walnut commercial," she said remembering the snip of the chorus repeated in less than 30 seconds. "Why, do you listen to him?"

"Barely," Asami quietly answered. She decided to switch the conversation far away from her job as possible. "So what made you want to move to Republic City?"

"I heard they had the best pizza," Korra said nearly finished with hers.

Asami shook her head with a subtle smirk on her lips. "Aside from that," she said wanting her to elaborate.

Korra shrugged her shoulders and gave a generic answer instead of a real one. "Came to help my aunt out," she said wanting to add more to it but decide to keep that to herself. "How long have you lived here?" she said rephrasing and directing the question at her.

"All my life," Asami answered with pride. She loved the city but always looked forward to seeing other parts of the world specially on tour.

"City girl..." Korra said under her breath with a grin.

Asami picked up one of her fries and tossed it at her. "Says the country girl."

Korra picked it up from her lap and took a bite. "Yeah," she said agreeing. "Its not a bad thing. I meant it as a compliment with a hint of sarcasm," she said gesturing that with her fingers.

"Just a hint?" Asami asked arching a brow.

"Tiny hint," Korra said with a smile.

They both shared a laugh. "Well thank you again for saving my jacket the other day. Most people would have took it and kept it for themselves," she said remembering the important flash drive that was in the lining of her jacket.

Korra knew a lot of people would but wasn't the type. "True but what's the point? It doesn't belong to me to begin with so why keep it?" _Plus it looks better on you anyway..._

Asami found that adorable. "How noble of you."

"Sarcasm with a hint of a compliment?" Korra asked flipping it on her now.

"Not at all. I really mean it," Asami said as sincere as possible.

Korra eyed her with a serious look for a few seconds before smiling again. "I know you do."

Asami couldn't read her expression til she smiled again. "You are a trip," she softly uttered with a smile.

* * *

Outside of the restaurant, Hiroshi's men were waiting in a tinted car across the street. "How long do you think they'll be?" the passenger asked.

"Not sure..." The driver said looking through the window. They had been sitting out there for 20 minutes. "Here we go," he said spotting the two ladies.

Asami's car was parked in front of the restaurant with valet handing her back her keys.

The passenger began to take multiple pictures on his camera of both ladies getting into the vehicle while the driver called Hiroshi. "They just left."

"Follow them," Hiroshi commanded before hanging up.

"Yes sir," he said ending the call and making a U-Turn to follow them.

* * *

Asami took Korra to the last stop on their tour: Harmony Tower. They were on the observation deck over looking the city. "So how do you like the city so far?"

Korra felt a cool breeze across her face and thought about her question. "Its very different from where I'm from."

"How so?" Asami questioned.

Korra had several answers to it and simply put. "It's not quiet at all," she uttered amused by that fact alone. "Where I'm from you could hear a pin drop outside," she said over exaggerating. It was more of a comforting silence that allowed you to sleep throughout the night.

Asami giggled at her observation. "The city's not that bad," she said looking out at it.

Korra looked over at her and softly smiled. "No its not," she said agreeing. Looking back up at the sky, Korra noticed a red speck and turned around spotting a red light above the tower. "What's that," she asked leaning against the railing.

Asami followed her line of sight and looked up. "That is the best part of this place," she said leaning in the same fashion. "The red light above was used during the 100 year war to alert airships of the structures location and later developed into an antenna at its stem to send radio waves to naval ships before it became a mainstream thing for us to use and abuse for news and music," she said giving a brief rundown of Republic City's national monument.

Korra became so engaged with what Asami was saying she began to stare.

Asami noticed out of the corner of her eye and looked directly at her. "You okay?" she asked with a bit of concern in her voice.

"It's beautiful..." she said without thinking. Realizing she said that out loud, Korra cleared her throat and looked away. "The view," she said turning back around toward the railing. She looked back at Asami and repeated her words. "Its beautiful," she said really meaning her.

Asami's face remained neutral for a few seconds and slowly formed into one of a content demeanor. "It is.." she said thinking the same of her.

* * *

After spending the day together, Asami drove Korra back to the cafe. She parked by the same fire hydrant she occupied a few hours ago.

"Thank you for today," Korra sincerely said.

"Your welcome," Asami replied with a smile.

The two became quiet after that. Korra looked down at the floor of the car trying to think of something to say but drew a blank. The last thing she wanted to do was say something stupid that would ruin the night.

After a moment of awkward silence, Asami spoke again. "I had a great time."

Korra looked at her surprised. "So did I," she said gulping afterwards. She didn't want it to be awkward again so she continued. "We should do it again sometime... if you want too," she said hoping that would be the case.

Asami smiled softly and gave her a nod. "I'd like that."

"Great..." Korra said with a smile of her own. Not wanting to keep her any longer, Korra took off her seat belt and reached for the door handle. "Goodnight," she said before getting out of the car.

"Goodnight," Asami said disappointed it had to end. She waited and watched as Korra walked inside the building safely before driving off.

Korra walked inside of the cafe with a smirk stuck on her face. She started to hum a tune that came to mind at the thought of Asami. _There's no mistaking. Your breathtaking. I find your mind so fascinating that its making me anxious to see you again. Damn..._ She ran upstairs to write these rhymes down before it got away from her.

Korra walked into the apartment and down the hall to her room. She plopped down on her bed and grabbed her notepad to write it down.

Kya came out of her room dressed up to the nines. She was heading out herself when she heard Korra come in. Walking up to her room, Kya knocked on her screen door before taking a peek in. "Hey Tui. You staying in for the night?" she asked since it was only 10 o'clock.

Korra placed her book to the side of her thigh in order for it not to be seen. "Yeah," she said with a smile.

"How was your day?" Kya asked seeing a spark in the young girl's eyes.

Korra thought on all the things they did today and summed it up in a simply phrase. "Amazing."


End file.
